Servant of Sorrow
by AkashaReflections
Summary: Super soldier: Perfect in theory, yet faulty when created in real life. After six years of experimenting, creating, assembling, and disassembling, the scientists of Reikai think they've perfected the impossible. But have they gotten all of the bugs out?
1. Chapter 1

Stats:

Number: Genetically Engineered Experiment 193

Alias: Artemis

Age: Has the appearance of a twenty year old, after being inside a growth chamber for six years.

D.O.C. (Date of Creation): April 19, 2001 11:08 A.M.

Gender: Female

Height: 5'8"

Weight: 135 lbs.

Hair Color: Straight white hair with bangs that falls to just beneath her shoulder blades. Number 193 always has her hair down with it pulled into two small pigtails.

Eye Color: Red

Background information: After many years of failed experiments and millions of dollars later, the most advanced scientific team in all three worlds was able to create to elite fighters from the strongest fighters in all the worlds. Being fully biological creatures, numbers 192 and 193 were placed into a generation tube, which acted as a growth medium for the two small masses of genomes.

Upon their emergence in the early summer of 2007, Number 192, who had experienced the best care the doctors could give him was released and allowed to go into the Makai, as a spy for the Rekai. His sister, was not so lucky. She, unlike her brother, had been completely shut off from the rest of the world and had images of every battle style known to demons forced to play everyday in her head. She did not speak upon emergence from her pod, but rather destroyed the pod and turned on the doctors, killing the very people who had worked so hard to bring her to life. After being restrained by the Spirit Detective Force, she was brought before Lord Koenma, prince of the spirit world. With a little help from his father, he was able to control the young girl and use her as an assassin.

Number 193 was unable to speak or function as any normal twenty year old would. Her crimson eyes were always flat, never showing any type of emotion. However, it was determined that she did have to mind to learn how to speak, and act as normal human would. However, Koenma was convinced by some of the counterparts that had survived the attack she led on them that she was the ultimate weapon. One who did not question orders or think for herself. She was, what they called "the Perfect Killing Machine". It was explained to him later than the scientists actually planned for the girl to emerge this way. She was placed in a tube of complete isolation during her growth hoping to force her to think nothing of the kill.

Lord Koenma was a little disturbed by this notion at first, but with a little more convincing from the scientist, Koenma allowed them to send her on her first mission. An assassination of a demon who had been charged responsible for the death of hundreds of demons in the Makai. Koenma sighed as the girl dawned her specially designed battle armor, and he watched he disappear into the night, under the light of the full moon. It was a few short hours later that the girl once again appeared in Koenma's office once again, dragging the mutilated corpse of a demon in her stead. She simply tossed the demon onto Koenma's desk and stood there, staring at her. When he went to touch her, she moved to slice the Prince's head off, her eyes sparking at the thought of battle. She was restrained and held in a prison cell in the Rekai.

The prince held extreme pity for the girl who was locked away in the prison cell beneath the Rekai and with a little help from his father, he was able to control the young girl and use her as an assassin. He gave the girl the code name of Artemis, the Greek goddess of the moon and the hunt, for she struck on every mission in the sight of the full moon. He began trying to teach Artemis to speak and act as a normal human would, hoping that she would be able to join her brother in the Makai to help he regain some of the control he lost after the death of Mukuro. He had hoped that joining her brother would be the thing that would calm her constant bloodlust. However, this lesson was met with great resistance and Koenma had no choice but to lock the girl in a nonresponsive state in the pit of the spirit world.

"Koenma, sir!" The large blue ogre, George, screamed to his master, as he burst through the large wooden doors, his nails scraping deep gashes into the marble floor as he tried to come to an abrupt halt.

"What is it ogre?" The prince, now in toddler form hissed irritably as he placed one final stamp on the paper in front of him before pushing the file of the assassin killed away from him, narrowing his chocolate colored eyes at his assistant.

"Sir, there's been a break in security." George whispered almost inaudibly, poking his two index fingers together, afraid of the uproar that would surely follow.

"WHAT?" Koenma roared, hopping from his large leather chair and turning into his teenage form, "WHY DIDN'T YOU SAY THAT EARLIER!" he roared once more, charging the blue ogre and lifting him high into the air, "WHERE WAS THE BREAK?"

"Section B-15," George whimpered, struggling to get free of his master's grasp, "Cell 193." He whimpered even more softly this time, Koenma's nails tearing shallow gashes into his skin the more he struggled.

"That's the experiment's holding cell is it not?" Koenma asked, his tone immediately becoming calm once more, releasing his large blue assistant, who bounced when he hit the floor.

"Yes sir," George whimpered again trying to remain pleasant , as he rubbed his now throbbing rear, using Koenma's desk to pull himself from the cold, marble floor.

"Why didn't you just say that from the beginning?" The prince asked quickly, as he sat once more behind his large wooden desk, pulling the piles of paperwork back in front of him. "193 can handle herself, if anyone tried to remove her from her hibernation chamber, she would have immediately awakened and killed them on sight." He said quickly to his assistant, as he placed his large red seal on the top of every paper, before moving onto the next one.

"Sir, she's been taken." George said quietly, silently cursing Botan and the other assistants for making him be the bearer of bad news.

"WHAT?" Koenma shouted, leaping from his chair, causing it to topple over as he made a made dash out of his office and towards the prison cells, running past the many saluting guards who worked for him as he went.

"The doctors said that something had been injected into the fluids, which caused her body to retain the state while she was moved." George panted, clinging to his master's cloak desperately, hoping that would keep the young prince from running off and leaving him again.

"And they are sure she is no where on the premises?" Koenma asked, skidding into the now open cell. Seeing the destruction before him was enough to convince him that George was telling the truth. The tank where 193 had been kept safe for so long was totally shattered, the many pieces of it's glass door scattered all over the floor. He stepped cautiously over the puddles of light blue fluids as he made his way over to the chief investigator.

"No sir," The investigator answered Koenma's question with a polite bow and a salute. "We've had teams search the entire premises and there is no sign of number 193 or her captors." He reported, as he continued taking notes of the scene on the small pamphlet he held in his hand.

"We have to find her, Captain," Koenma spoke firmly, causing the leader of the group to take on a an immediate attention stance as Koenma paced around him. "I want the best of your men on this case, hell, I want the best men you can find on this. We can't afford for 193 to get out into the public. I shouldn't have to tell you what will happen if she does."

"Sir!" The captain answered, taking a salute pose once more.

"Good, dismissed." Koenma said watching the Captain run from the room before bending over to pick up a strand of long silver hair that had been left behind in the floor, "Take this to the lab, perhaps they can use it to get a lock on her energy signal." He addressed a female investigator this time, handing the hair over to her.

"YES SIR!" She shouted nervously as she quickly placed the long hair in a plastic bag before running from the room, her knee high black boots squealing on the floor as she went.

"Ogre, let's go," Koenma said, all the color draining from his face, "I think, it's time to go see my father about this." Koenma felt his stomach cutting flips as he and his assistant made their way down the long corridor to his father's enormous chambers.

'He is going to kill me this time…' Koenma told himself mentally as he lifted his hand and placed a gentle knock on the large, ornate door.

Meanwhile

"Sir," a raspy voice called through the shadows of the dank hideaway of the newly reformed Black-Black club, "Master Susamajii" the man called again, trembling under the weight of the girl who was slung over his shoulder, her longer silver hair making its way into his mouth almost every time he opened it. "The girl is here as you requested, sir!" He spat, expelling more of her silver locks from his mouth

"Excellent work Hiroku, you may place her there," the much older man said calmly to his younger counterpart, emerging from the shadows finally. He cleaned his glasses as he waited for the young man to put the girl down.

He scratched his beard in anticipation as the younger man placed her on a table on the far side of the room. He couldn't believe that the fools in the Rekai had actually allowed this girl to be taken. The man moved toward where Hiroku had lain the body of the captured experiment and slowly began to examine every piece of her body, his misty blue eyes trailing over every feature, admiring her beauty.

"What is so special about this girl, sir?" Hiroku implored, as he leaned around the older man, desperately trying to get a better view of the girl that he had just taken from the bowels of Koenma's palace.

"She will be the end to one Yusuke Urameshi, Hiroku," the man said as he administered a clear liquid that was obviously meant to overturn the effects of the sleeping potion Hiroku had given just hours before hand, "Surely you remember him?" The olden man growled as he dabbed away some of the girls blood that was oozing from the small pinprick.

Hiroku ran his hand through his course auburn hair as memories of the detective flashed before his eyes. How he had watched numerous members of the infamous, Black Black Club utterly ruined at the dark tournament. He, being just a mere gopher for one of the groups top leaders at the time, remembered his boss as well as the other remaining bosses wanting to seek revenge on the human boy for destroying their comrades financial supremacy. Now, he had come into money after his boss's death and had sworn that he would carry on his bosses stead. His green eyes flashed once again as he noticed the sleeping girl before him begin to stir.

"Experiment 193," Susamajii muttered as her eyes flickered open, her crimson irises flat, no emotion beneath them as she rose, almost mechanically from the spot where she lay. "Glad to see you are alright." He spoke gently to the girl, not wanting to startle her.

She turned her head slowly to face the oldest of the two men, the one who had just addressed her. He was an older gentlemen with a very wrinkled face, shrouded behind overly large glasses and a poorly trimmed beard. Before he could even make a gesture to her, she had changed her focus to the younger man who stood on her right. The young man quivered as he looked into her eyes, seeing the dullness in the pupils nearly made goose bumps erupt on ever surface of his body.

"You have a small cut, must be from the glass," Hiroku muttered to the girl, still shocked at the appearance of her eyes as he ran to get something to clean the small wound with, "I apologize, we can't have our ticket to defeating Yusuke Urameshi damaged" he smirked as he went to clean the wound. As soon as his hands touched her pale skin she turned on him, moving with utmost precision and struck him in six places at one before landing the final blow to his jaw and sending him in to the far wall.

Susamajii clapped his hands lightly as he called over to his partner, "Do you see now why I said we had to have her?" He chuckled lightly as he pulled a large piece of the wall off of his partner before giving him a hand up.

"I see now Susamajii," Hiroku spat, a bit of blood trickling from his lip, "But what is this brilliant scheme you've talked so much about?" He asked, dusting a few chips of wall from his hair.

"I just want to have a little bit of fun with this detective." He replied, his lip curling into a smirk as he faced his partner, scratching his shaggy graying beard as he spoke. The older man paused at this time, making his way over to a large filing cabinet and pulling a manila folder from it.

"I want her to kill Keiko Yukimura." He said as he threw a packet of papers toward her, which she caught effortlessly between her index and middle fingers. She flipped the packet open and her eyes went to work, feverishly reading every detail that these two crooks had managed to gather in the months they had prepared for her to arrive. After a mere two minutes of reading through the file, she merely dropped it and untied her lose fitting hospital gown, causing the two men to gawk at her revealing battle attire.

"You know what you must do?" Susamajii asked her, staring down at her barely covered breasts, feeling a quick tightening in his trousers. She never answered him, but rather revealed her large broadsword that had been concealed in a small trinket that she wore around her neck. She flipped down her scanning eye piece and punched in the correct coordinates for the one called Keiko's home and without a word, she disappeared into the night.

With Keiko

Keiko opened the door and walked into the den of her small apartment, carrying a different assortment of books, notebooks, pencil packs, and of course a book bag which was loaded down with the same material. She sighed as she haphazardly threw the books down on her small couch and made her way into the kitchen. Her stomach made an angry noise, and she chuckled and made her way over to the refrigerator.

She sighed when she caught sight of the note that was attached to the front, 'Keiko, sorry we ate all the food. We went out to get you some groceries. Yusuke and Kuwabara.' She giggled at the boys atrocious writing and plopped down in one of the dining chairs and gazed out at the night sky.

'Damn you Yusuke,' She thought to herself, 'Of all the nights for you two to raid my refrigerator, why did it have to be when I was actually hungry?' A chill filled the room as she made her way back into the den causing Keiko's eyes fell on the slightly ajar door. She walked over toward it and shut and locked it, then, she walked back over to her couch and started work on the copious amounts of work that her professors had given her on her first day of college.

She continued working in silence for a few moments before she heard the sound of rustling in her bedroom. "Alright you guys, very funny," Keiko sighed as she made her way over into her bedroom, "I knew you guys were her the whole time." She giggled as she entered the seemingly empty room. She smiled as she quietly walked to the closest, hoping to find the guys in there. She flung open the door, only to reveal a very overstuffed clothing rack.

"Hey you guys?" she questioned as she bent down and searched under her bed. "That's weird" she said as she paced back into the living room her mind reeling over what could have made that mysterious noise.

Keiko became so engrossed with her thoughts that she didn't notice the tall, crimson eyed girl who was making her way silently behind her, blade at the ready. When Keiko moved to sit, the girl wrapped her arm around her shoulder, using her other hand to place his broadsword to her throat.

"WHO ARE YOU?" Keiko screamed as she wrestled free of the girl's loose grasp and fled to the other side of the room. The girl did not respond, she simply slowly walked closer and closer to Keiko, her eyes focused on the terrified girl before her.

"STAY AWAY!" Keiko shouted at her assailant as she began throwing heavy books and anything else she could get her hands on at the girl. However, these did no good as the young woman was able to block each and every piece that came, her eyes never leaving Keiko's terrified face.

"Yukimura, Keiko," The girl's headpiece spoke to her in a soft, mechanical voice as the girl came upon Keiko. She reached down and wrapped her long skinny fingers around the collar of Keiko's shirt, hoisting her from the ground. She simply stared into Keiko's eyes for a brief moment before tossing her to the other side of the apartment, causing Keiko to go crashing through a bookshelf.

"How, do you know my name?" Keiko choked out as she pushed some of the heavy books off of her before struggling to get to her feet, her back throbbing and making it very difficult to stand.

The girl's crimson gaze suddenly narrowed as she held up the large broadsword with one hand, ready for her attack. Before Keiko had time to react, the girl had flown across the room to meet her. With a quick sweep of the large metal object, blood began to gush from a very deep gash made in abdomen, causing Keiko to howl in pain.

Keiko slid between her attacker's legs and ran for the door, her bright brown eyes wide with fear as she tried her best to pry the locked door open while her attacker slowly sauntered over to her. Keiko moved to scream once again, but never got the chance. The girl moved with such precision and grace that before Keiko could breathe in, she was grabbing at her throat, trying to stop the spraying blood that was now flowing from her freely bleeding jugular.

She looked up at her assailant one last time, her eyes filled with tears, feeling the darkness closing in on her "Please…don't" she whispered up before laying her head against the bloodstained door.

The girl simply brought her sword back up and drove it, point first through Keiko's head, splitting it almost completely in two. With her mission complete, she returned the large sword back into it's crimson gem and placed around her neck. Then, without a sound, she made her way into the kitchen and out the open window, just as the front door began to creak open.

Back at the Lair

"Sir, do you think something has gone wrong?" a frantic Hiroku paced back and forth in the dank space that was used for Susamajii's office. "Experiment 193 has been gone a long time."

"Be patient my friend." Susamajii called to his partner as he held up a glass of wine, "Take a drink and calm down. The girl will be along." He said quietly as he pour from the bottle of red wine and offered it to his nervous friend.

As if on cue she dropped down from a hole that she had cut out in the ceiling. "Welcome back 193" Hiroku smiled as he walked over toward her and place his hand on her shoulder, "Would you like to come back over to your pod?" he asked as he began leading her back to the chamber he had fashioned.

She turned her eyes to the young man, and without warning had instantly punched him through Susamajii's desk. "HIROKU!" Susamajii called out as he tried desperately to pull his fallen partner from the rubble.

"Susamajii," Hiroku spoke softly as he handed him a syringe filled with a clear fluid, "Use this to subdue her, I will help you to get her into the holding pod once I get out of this mess." He whispered, feeling a sharp object digging deeper into his abdomen as he tried to move.

Susamajii took he syringe and made his way over toward Experiment 193, "Hello 193," he smirked at her as he kept the needle hidden behind his back and out of her sight. "How did your mission go?" He asked, making his way over to the confused and silent girl, making sure to keep his distance.

193 did not answer, but simply stared down at Hiroku, who was still trapped in the large pile of rubble she had created. She made her way over to the struggling man and extended a hand down to him, as if she were offering to help him up. However, before she could get him out, Susamajii took his chance and plunged the syringe deep into her back.

Feeling the slight twinge in her back, she smirked at the two gentlemen's feeble attempts to catch her off guard. Showing a bit of emotion in her face with a smirk, she easily summoned her large sword once more from her pendent and easily removed Susamajii's head from his shoulders, sending the lose skull rolling across the floor. Then she turned her gaze to the now struggling Hiroku, who was trying so desperately to escape from her crimson glare.

"PLEASE 193, SPARE ME!" He cried out to her, holding up his hands in a feeble attempt to defend himself. She extended her hand down to help the man up which he graciously accepted. Then just as he was pulling himself up, she ran her blade through the entire length of his body, killing him instantly. She smirked as the blood of her two latest victims mingled on her body before flinging his body off the edge of her sword and across the room.

She changed into back into her normal clothes that Koenma had given her before she was to make her grand escape. However, it was not to come to pass as the medication that had been slipped into her body through the needle began to take it's toll and she hit the floor, sleep overcoming her.

With Koenma

"KOENMA SIR!" George skidded through the office once again knocking the young prince over. "Sorry sir, there is urgent news on the" George immediately stopped as he noted the now swollen red face of Botan and the bloodshot eyes of Koenma, "Sir?"

"George, Yusuke just called." Koenma's voice came almost at a whisper, the pain threatening to take over him. As Botan sobbed behind him, a large box of tissues in her hand.

"Oh did he? How is he?" The completely oblivious George asked, glad to hear that their friend had called.

"Keiko's dead." Koenma whispered in an inaudible tone. However, it had been just enough for George's sensitive hearing to pick up.

"What?" George whispered back, as he felt tears form in his own eyes as he thought back on the many times he had spent following the spunky brunette around at the tournaments, "But sir how? WHY?" He roared as he sank to his knees, tears flowing down his jagged features.

"She was brutally murdered. Kuwabara and Yusuke stumbled on the body when heading back into her apartment." Koenma said as he wiped more tears from his eyes, Botan sobbing once more into a tissue she held. "But that will have to wait for now, what is it that you wanted to tell me?"

"Oh yes it's about the experiment." George said out loud as he noticed Botan's head pop up from it's downward position.

"What have they found out?" Koenma asked, almost excited for a brief moment, praying at least one thing could go right on this terrible day.

"They've found her sir!" George cried out, a semi-happy sigh of relief as he let a few more tears flow for his fallen friend.

"Very well, you are dismissed. Take a few days, I'm sure you'll be wanting to come with us to pay your final respects." Koenma sighed again, as he watched his assistant push himself from the floor.

"Yes sir," George choked out quietly as he made a small bow and made his way out of the room, shutting the door silently behind him

"Koenma," Botan's voice cracked as she spoke for the first time since escorting Keiko across the River Styx, "Do you think that 193 did this?"

"Botan, there is no proof of that," Koenma suddenly became enraged with Botan, "And until we do, you are not to utter a word of this to anyone, DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?" His voice boomed throughout the office. His sudden outburst of anger instantly triggered another rush of tears from Botan as she fled from his office. The prince stared after her for only a moment, before sitting down in his chair. He massaged his temples as he replayed the events of the day in his head.

"What have I created?" he whispered to himself before flopping his head down onto his crossed arms, letting the stored up tears flow freely now, soaking his long shirt sleeves. "Oh Keiko, I'm so sorry." He whispered over and over to himself sobbing himself to sleep on his desk that night. 


	2. Chapter 2

Koenma paced nervously in his office, his mind racing, unaware of why he was about to ask a favor of the very short tempered spirit detective. His pulse quickened at the thought of the leader of his team, who had nearly leveled his office the last time they had spoken. He ran his trembling hands over a large and very crude patch in the wall nearest to his desk, shuddering, remembering the horror of the mazoku unleashed.

"I hope he's gained a better grip on the situation in the last two months," a soft, melodic voice spoke from behind Koenma, causing him to shake even more nervously. He turned around slowly and found himself staring into the violet eyes of his assistant, Ayame. "I'm sorry sir," She said apologetically as she bowed her head, "Please forgive me for startling you."

"It's alright, Ayame," Koenma's said quietly, admiring the beautiful raven haired maiden before him. It was true, her sudden intrusion had startled him, but she could never be as freighting as the terrible might brought on by Yusuke's mazoku blood. The teenage ruler shuddered again at the thought, plopping down in his leather seat behind his grand desk. He ran his left hand swiftly through his auburn hair, hoping that it would help to calm his nerves.

"Sir, I just came to inform you that Kurama is here," Ayame's said quietly as she pulled her black clipboard from within her black kimono sleeves, "Would you like me to escort him in when Mr. Urameshi arrives?" 

"No, but thank you anyway, Ayame," Koenma said nervously standing almost as soon as she had mentioned Yusuke's name and moving to the window, unable to sit still any longer. "Tell him I will be with him." He said quickly, before turning his gaze to the window, watching rain pelt against the outside, "If I am alive after this meeting with Yusuke." He muttered to himself as he pressed his forehead against the cool window pane.

"As you wish, sir," She said quietly, touching his shoulder gently before exiting the room, closing the door gently behind her. Koenma continued gazing out the window, watching the rain falling outside on this gloomy day. The sounds of heavy footsteps gave Koenma his cue to move back to his desk and prepare himself for the onslaught of one very angry spirit detective. 

"KOENMA!" Yusuke roared, from the hallway, throwing open the large doors with such a force that it left imprints in the walls behind them, causing Koenma to tremble quietly, staring at his detective where he stood.

He stood in the doorway fro a moment, his brown eyes staring at his boss where he sat, almost as if he were ready to kill him if he didn't give him some good news. He panted heavily as his rage coursed through him, threatening to overtake him and kill Koenma on the spot.

"Glad to see you too, Yusuke," Koenma said quietly, watching Yusuke's classic blue aura encircling his fists, as if he were preparing for an attack, "Please have a seat," He said quietly as he motioned to the single small wooden chair that was in front of his desk, "And shut those doors, please. This meeting is of some importance, and I don't want just anyone hearing." He spoke simply, hoping not to use any sort of tone that may anger the detective further and cause him to lose control.

Yusuke stared at his boss for a moment, his mouth becoming the most awful scowl he could muster. He stood staring at his trembling boss for a moment more before he slammed the great doors back closed and stomped to his seat. He sat in the chair in silence, unaware of why his boss would have called him back to this place, but knowing that it had to be some mission he wanted to send him out on. He could feel his blood boiling within him at the thought of this, as his mind raced over the many ways he could kill the man sitting before him.

"Yusuke," Koenma said nervously, effectively breaking the silence after a few moments. "I have a mission for you." He half sighed, waiting for the detectives temper to break.

"I've told you, Koenma," Yusuke hissed, leaning back against the wooden chair, crossing his arms, "No missions." He said quietly, narrowing his eyes at his boss as he picked up one of Koenma's files from the desk, "Not until we find Keiko's murderer and I rip off his head with my own two hands." He said almost silently, ripping the large file into two separate pieces, flinging the scrap pieces of paper onto the floor.

"I'm aware of what you've told me, Yusuke," Koenma massaged his temples, trying not to lose his temper with the detective, who showed no signs of wavering from his original plan. "I assure you, I have some of my best people working on her case, but they have yet to turn up any evidence." He said quietly, pushing the report towards Yusuke, hoping it would prove he wasn't lying.

"Then I guess we're done here," The detective scoffed as he rose, stomping back towards the door, "Send one of the other teammates to handle this mission." Yusuke said loudly, "It can't be all that bad if you just called me in."

"No," Koenma said quietly, as he pressed the button on the underside of his desk, which immediately bolted the doors shut, preventing Yusuke's escape. "You are doing this mission." Koenma said sharply, earning yet another glare from the detective who stood across from him. "You are the only one I trust with this mission."

"And, IF I refuse?" Yusuke suddenly appeared mere inches in front of the young ruler's face. His breath coming in slow, shallow bursts as he tried to prevent his mazoku side from coming forth and slaughtering Koenma on the spot. Koenma stepped back a bit, watching Yusuke's aura completely surround his body, but he never shuddered in his presence. 

"I WILL pull all of my resources off of Keiko's case, Yusuke," Koenma said curtly as he watched Yusuke's hand threaten to move to his neck, "I am doing all of this as a favor to you, my friend," Koenma hissed, causing the detective to put his hand back down. "Will you accept?"

"Why didn't you just ask one of the others to handle this mission?" Yusuke questioned, never taking his glare away from Koenma as he made his way back to his seat, "Do you really not trust any of them?"

"It's not that I don't trust them," Koenma said quickly as he took his seat, beginning through one of the many drawers that lined the sides of his desk, desperately searching through the hundreds of files for one that had been shoved in the very back, hidden away from the rest of the world. 

"Hiei, hasn't been seen since Sahara's death." Koenma said lowly, hearing Yusuke's voice catch in his breath at the sound of Sahara's name. "And Kuwabara, he's a nice guy, but I really don't think he's up for this kind of mission." Koenma said quietly, never bringing his face up from the drawer.

"And what about Kurama?" Yusuke spat, propping his feet onto the desk as he waited impatiently for the prince to get to the point.

"I have another mission for, Kurama," Koenma replied as he pulled a large red folder from within his desk, tossing it towards Yusuke, "His is also of great importance, and I think you are better suited for this type of mission."

"So, you are splitting us up?" The news of the split came as a shock to the detective, which was apparent in Yusuke's tone of voice as well as the way he held himself. Almost instantly, he opened the folder with haste, scanning for some sort of clue for the split. If Koenma was splitting up his team, he knew something bad had to be going on in the Rekai.

"For the time being, I think it's best," Koenma said, leaning back into his leather chair, rubbing his tired eyes, "Both of you will have your hands full with the missions you are being assigned."

Yusuke scanned through bits and pieces of the file in silence for a few moments, glancing from paper to paper as if he was trying to memorize all the reports made about this one person. "Got it, Koenma, so why do you want this person brought in?" Yusuke asked his boss as he tossed the red folder back across the desk, smacking Koenma in face with it.

"What?" Koenma asked his detective as he straightened the file, confused as to where his detective had gotten that information from.

"I just wanted to know, why do you want the person brought in?" Yusuke said as he held up the picture of a young girl with long white hair and lifeless crimson eyes, "She looks harmless enough, what did she do?" He asked as he turned the picture back to him, admiring the girl who seemed to stare right through the picture at him. 

"Yusuke, you misunderstand," Koenma spoke quietly as he pulled a report from the folder and slid it on the desk in front of him, "This girl is one of the experiments that my team of scientists have created." Koenma said as he pointed to a specific line of the report, showing Yusuke exactly where to start reading, "Your job is to teach her how to behave like a normal person would so that she may became a spy for the Rekai."

"WHAT?" Yusuke roared as he threw the report back towards the ruler, "You can't honestly expect me to teach someone everything they need to know!" Yusuke spat angrily as he paced angrily around the room, the picture of the girl clutched tightly in his left hand.

"YUSUKE!" Koenma's voice boomed, echoing throughout the room and catching the angry detective off guard for a moment, "SIT DOWN!" He thundered again, this time without worrying that he would upset the mazoku. The detective complied more readily this time, but not before he shot another glare to Koenma. The young price sighed heavily once more, massaging his now throbbing temples, "Have some compassion for this poor girl."

"Why should I?" Yusuke hissed quietly, cutting his eyes away from Koenma and looking back down at the picture in his hand.

"She has endured more than either of us since the date of her creation," Koenma said quietly as he pulled a dusty, spineless diary from within the folder. He thumbed through the beginning pages before he read from the page he was looking for, a page that had been penned nearly two years prior.

December 12, 2005,

192 and 193 have completed their time in the growth chambers and may be released upon Lord Koenma's orders. However, I have requested that we try another experiment on the two surviving experiments. I have gathered some of the most gruesome images of battle tournaments as well as a copy of the infamous "Chapter Black" video from records in the Rekai. With Lord Koenma's permission, I am to begin to play these images for 193, hoping that this will instill in her the will to fight anything that her leader commands.

193 was selected to perform this tasks over her brother by a vote of the lab assistants. She was chosen because as one of my colleagues pointed out, her brother was brought up in contact with other living beings and has therefore developed a sense of self. However, 193 has been secluded all of her existence, leaving her a blank slate for anything we hope to put in her. I pray that we have made the right selection in showing this girl this images of horror, for if we have and our plan succeeds, we will have created the ultimate fighting machine. The Perfect Soldier.

Koenma shut the folder and observed the disgusted look on the detectives face, "And she was force fed these images everyday until their emergence during early June this year." "Koenma shuddered as he began rummaging through the large folder once more.

"What did they do?" Yusuke asked, obviously intrigued by the creatures that Koenma's scientists had created while he and his team had been staying just a few feet away in the mansion that was prepared for them. He shuddered to think that Koenma would have allowed these sick people to do this, while he and his friends were so nearby.

"192, was the first to emerge," Koenma said as he sat back, blowing a bit of dust from some old pictures before flipping through them himself, "And he instantly was deemed a success by the scientists and sent deep into the Makai, were he has been working for us ever since." He said, shaking his head at the disgusting images that were now sitting before him

"And the girl?" Yusuke's eyes focused back on the picture in his hand, "What happened to her?" He asked, confused as to why Koenma was avoiding the subject of the girl.

Koenma sat back for a bit, before he continued the story, "She emerged, and slaughtered all of the scientists on the spot." Koenma pushed forward the photos he had just pulled from the folder, unable to look at them any longer, "We found her standing the middle of the room, her hands, face, legs, everything was coated in blood." 

Yusuke was a bit taken aback by the scenes of absolute gore that ran before his eyes as he scanned through the many pictures. Never, in his six years for working with the Rekai, had he seen such absolute gore. Scattered body parts of the scientists littered every part of the room, which had now been stained an eerie shade of red by the blood spatter.

In one of the last pictures, it showed the girl, handing one of the detectives a severed head with the spine still attached to it. It was almost as if she was trying to help the group of people clean up the mess she had made. He shuddered when he stared into the girl's lifeless eyes, seeing the dried blood that was caked around them and in her hair. It was then that he had to push the photos away, his stomach cutting flips and threatening to empty itself on the floor in Koenma's office.

"So, you just let this girl go free?" Yusuke gasped for air as he leaned his head down into both hands, trying desperately to clear his mind of the photos.

"No Yusuke," Koenma said softly as he placed the photos back into the folder and back into the drawer on the side of his desk, "She has been kept locked away in an isolation chamber, with a special fluid to keep her from waking up." He sighed as he made his way back to the window, watching the rain once again.

"And you want ME to teach this girl how to be normal?" Yusuke asked, lifting his head to gauge the ruler's reaction to the question, feeling the uneasiness in his stomach instantly come back, "Why do you want to teach her now?" He asked quietly, placing his head back in his hands.

"Because, she needs to be able to function on her own," Koenma said quietly, keeping his gaze from the detective, "She is no longer safe here. There has been an intelligence leak and someone has discovered her."

This piece of information startled Yusuke slightly. In all of his years, never had their been an intelligence leak in the Rekai. "What makes you think that?" The detective asked as he gazed at Koenma's reflection in the window, watching for any signs Koenma may have known who it was.

"She has been abducted twice since the date she was first released." Koenma turned to face the detective, his eyes pleading with Yusuke to take the case, "Once she was abducted by an unknown party, but returned a few days later of her own accord."

Koenma paused for a moment, trying to find the best way to word the next situation, "The last time, was just a few months ago by the remaining members of the Black Black Club." Yusuke's face contorted into a hard glare at the mention of that name. "She had to be retrieved by the some of the other detectives."

"And what of the Black Black Club?" Yusuke asked, hoping to find out more about the surviving members. If law hadn't forbidden it, he and Hiei would have hunted down all of the pathetic survivors and killed them. His fist remained tightly clinched as he awaited Koenma's answer.

"There were only two of them there from what we can gather," Koenma said as he turned his gaze back to the window, crossing his arms behind his back, "And Artemis took care of them." He chuckled, hearing Yusuke's breath catch once more.

"Artemis?" Yusuke's voice sounded shocked as Koenma turned around to look on his detective, "You named that beast?" He questioned, absolutely shocked that Koenma was trying to protect this creature.

"Your mother named you didn't she?" Koenma chuckled at the glare Yusuke shot across the room toward him, "Yes I named her. In fact, I tried to teach her." He said quietly as his mind ran over the many days and sleepless nights that he sat in his office, trying to teach her the smallest of concepts.

"And you failed?" Yusuke asked and received a slight nod from Koenma, "Then why are you sending me if you know she can't be taught?" Yusuke asked, confused as to why his boss would send him on an impossible mission.

"Because I didn't have the time to spend with her that you do." Koenma said as he made his way back to his desk, "She will be moving in with you, so that she can observe all that humans do on a normal day." He said quickly as he took his seat once more, "I think she will learn more if she observes rather than someone telling her."

"WHAT?" Yusuke's voice echoed throughout the entire palace.

"Calm down, Yusuke," Koenma said as he uncovered his ears, "You will be handsomely rewarded for these services. All of her expenses will be paid for." Koenma smirked, knowing that the promise of more money would calm down the angered detective and probably give him more reason to take the job.

Yusuke said quietly, the thought of lining his pockets with a little extra cash helping to ease his confusion, "And what if I have an actual mission?" 

"That is another thing I want you to do," Koenma began, catching yet another glare from Yusuke, "I want you to take her on every mission with you. I think she will be of great help, especially with the four of you being split up."

"So, she can fight, but she can't function on her own?" Yusuke asked, "Why did they make her this way? What kind of sense does it make that she can fight but she doesn't know how to function in the real world?" He ranted, staring down at the picture in his hand once more.

"Maybe you don't understand the concept of the Perfect Soldier that my scientists were trying to create." Koenma answered as he leaned forward onto his desk, his bangs falling into his eyes, "They tried to create a fully genetic being, that did exactly as they told them. That would have no emotion when it came to killing anything that it was ordered to kill."

"Is that why the secluded her?" Yusuke asked, "Because they didn't want her to experience human emotions?" He questioned again, actually beginning to feel a slight twinge of pity for this girl whom he knew nothing about.

"Yes," Koenma said to his detective slowly, apparently a little shocked that he had figured it out so quickly, "But this backfired, because without these emotions she was unable to since fear coming from the scientists before she killed them."

"And why did you choose me for this mission again?" Yusuke asked putting his hands behind his head and leaning the wooden chair back slightly. "I mean, it seems to me that Kurama would be best suited for this situation."

"Because, I think you are the only one who is strong enough to handle her." Koenma said as he moved from his seat behind the desk and pushed the detectives chair legs back to the floor, staring into his dark brown eyes, "Now, will you accept this mission or not?"

"Only because you've gotten me so interested in this creature you've created." Yusuke said, as he prepared to follow Koenma out of the office. 

"She is not just a creature, Yusuke," Koenma snapped back at the detective as he released the bolts on the doors, "She has power beyond your wildest imagination and we could use that power if it was under our control." Koenma guided the detective down into the depths of the palace, weaving from corridor to corridor before finally stopping in front of one particular room. "But if she were to fall into the wrong hand it could be disastrous. That is why we need her to gain control over herself, so that she may blend in with everyone else."

Yusuke watched in silence as Koenma placed his hand to the touch screen on the door, and allowed the computer system to identify is palm print. He had to admit, the Rekai had gone through all the extra security measures to make sure this girl stayed out of the wrong hands. It made him wonder just how she had been kidnapped twice with such high security around her, and just what kind of criminals were able to break into a vault like this. Yusuke was shaken from his thoughts as the large vault-like door slid open, revealing the girl from all of the photos he had looked at previously.

To his surprised, she looked just as a normal girl would sleeping in the small chamber that had been fashioned just for her. While Koenma began to type in the specific codes so that he could release her, Yusuke caught himself staring into her face that was revealed to him through a small glass pane. It was rounded and long with very defined features. She could have been described as a beautiful girl, if she hadn't been fashioned to look the way she did. Still, he couldn't help but admire her pale, almost translucent skin, which gave off an iridescent glow if the light hit it just the right way. Her long white hair flowed from the roots to her waist, some of it wrapping around her sleeping form.

"She is quite beautiful isn't she?" Koenma asked when he noticed Yusuke's staring at the sleeping girl. The detectives eyes went wide before he turned away from her, feeling a huge amount of guilt hit him all at once. He couldn't believe that he had been staring at this girl, this creature, when he had just lost the only woman who had really mattered to him two months before hand. It made him almost sick to his stomach to think that he was thinking those thoughts about another girl.

"Yusuke, it's not wrong of you to look at other women," Koenma said quietly as he placed a hand on the detectives shoulder, "That just means that you are moving on." Koenma reassured his detective, seeing the look that crossed his face.

Yusuke grunted and shrugged away Koenma's hand, feeling an unsettling aura come into the room. He didn't want to move on, not yet. Keiko was the only girl who had ever loved him, and it was because of this stupid job that she was no longer with him. However, before the detective could become angry once more, he was caught off guard by the girl's eyes shooting open. He stared into the window, seeing her completely blank crimson orbs staring back at him, almost as if they were taking in every detail about him.

As soon as the door opened on her chamber, she was on her feet, her arms raised in front of her as if she was trying to defend herself. She glanced between Koenma and Yusuke quickly, her somber gaze never changing. It was then that she brought her hand to her neck and pulled a small red orb that had been hanging from a thin, silver chain. She closed her hand around the gem, a small red sheen covering her hand and within the next moment, she was wielding a large broadsword that was almost as long as she was tall. She tightened her grip on the blade and began to prepare an attack on the two men standing before her.

"ARTEMIS!" Koenma roared making her jerk suddenly, loosening her grip on her blade, but not releasing it. She looked to Koenma for a brief moment before summoning the blade back into it's gem, and placing it back on the chain that was hidden in her battle armor. Koenma sighed and tossed her some paperwork on Yusuke and an explanation of the situation. She quickly scanned through the paperwork and looked up when she had finished, her expression never changing. "Can you handle her?"

"I think she will be fine," Yusuke reassured the ruler, who breathed a huge sigh of relief and exited the room so that he could summon a portal for the two back to Yusuke's apartment.

The two of them just stood in silence for a long while before he extended his hand to her, waiting to see if she would react. She stared at it for a minute before she took his much larger hand in hers. "This is called a handshake." Yusuke automatically explained as he moved her hand in the classic manner, "My name is Yusuke." 


	3. Chapter 3

Yusuke stepped through the portal that transported him to his front door, pulling the young girl through behind him. While he was fumbling through his pockets searching for his keys he stole a glance over at the girl who was staring back at him. For a brief moment he felt actual sympathy for this girl that had been placed in his charge. He didn't understand how any being, no matter how they were created, could go through life not knowing what it was like to have someone care about them. He found himself lost in her completely blank stare, almost unaware that he had opened the door and began to usher her inside.

"Well, this is it," Yusuke said, still dazed as he stared into her dark crimson orbs. He sat down on the floor just inside the door and began removing his shoes, tossing them haphazardly into the middle of the small hallway. "Take off your shoes." He said quietly to the girl as he searched for his slippers.

She stood motionless at his side, only tilting her head slightly down to gaze at her new teacher. Her crimson eyes still unchanging as she stared down at his feet, which were now being hidden by two fluffy blue slippers. She stared at the new fluffy pieces of clothing for a brief moment longer before returning her gaze to his face.

"You don't understand, do you?" He questioned her, almost realizing immediately that she was confused by these new instructions.

Yusuke chuckled a bit at her confusion, understanding now just why Koenma had said this mission would require his full attention. It was true, she had no idea of how to communicate to him that she didn't understand, but he could gather what that look meant. It reminded him very much of the look that Kuwabara used to get when Kurama was trying to explain some of their more elaborate missions.

Yusuke laughed louder this time, his friend's face appearing in his mind, the look plastered on his face. He stifled his laugh, seeing the girl tilt her head once more, and grabbed her hand gently, pulling her down to sit beside him.

"These are shoes," He said as he motioned to the black tennis shoes that she wore, "You use them to….uh…keep your feet safe in fights, and for walking…and stuff," Yusuke said as he scratched the back of his head, frustrated with himself for giving such a pitiful explanation. She stared down at the shoes that covered her feet, her eyes seeming to take in every detail of the very simple shoes.

"Watch me," He commanded as he moved to touch one of the strings, feeling her body instantly tense at his close proximity. She, however, remained still, her eyes watching his every move as he touched one of the fragile loops gently before puling on it swiftly, making it come apart in his hand. "This is how you untie your shoes. Now you try."

Her gaze remained focused on the shoe that he had just untied for a brief moment, breaking down every move bit by bit. She brought her right hand down to the laces that hung limply at the sides of her shoe and picked it up, examining the fabric closely. Then, in almost the exact same motion as Yusuke, she extended her left hand and lifted the small bow of her opposite shoe. She intertwined her index finger with one of the small loops and pulled on it gently, instantly making the small bow fall apart in her hands. She stared at it for a brief moment before turning her gaze back to Yusuke.

"Very good, Artie," Yusuke chimed, patting her head lightly, "Now you just push the shoe off of your foot." He lifted her leg slightly and pulled the shoe off of her foot, revealing her fuzzy white socks. She once again repeated his every movement, making sure not to miss a single detail.

Yusuke watched as she, reached down and touched the fuzzy white material that cloaked her feet. She seemed so intrigued at this new found material that had emerged from inside her shoes. She ran her finger along the elastic band at the top of her sock and slid it beneath it, preparing to remove them.

"No, Artie," Yusuke said, placing a hand on top of hers, making her instantly stop her movements and turn her crimson gaze back to him, "You only have to take off your shoes when you go into someone's house.

"Then you put on some" he glanced around, looking for an extra pair of the slippers that he and his mother wore around the house. "Stay here, Artie, I'll be right back." He stood quickly and made his way down the narrow hallway and toward his small bedroom.

He entered the cluttered and dank smelling bedroom, instantly diving under his bed. 'Alright,' he thought to himself as he pushed himself deeper into the pile of junk that had gathered under his bed, 'I know I've got a spare pair in here somewhere.'

He continued digging through the mountains of things under his bed, mentally cursing himself for leaving his room so unorganized. He moved his way through empty soda cans, dirty laundry, and moldy slices of pizza that had collected over the past few months.

It was after he had thrown a pair of his old tennis shoes out of the way that his hand ran against a soft, furry-like object. He reached a little deeper under his and successfully nabbed a small red slipper, which he had given to Yukina the last time that she and Kuwabara had come to visit. After pushing more garbage from underneath his bed, he was able to locate it's twin and dashed back into the hallway close to the door where he had left Artemis sitting.

"Yusuke, who is this lovely young lady?" He heard his mother's half-drunk voice calling to him as he came upon them, his mother pacing suspiciously around the still silent Artemis, "Is she your hot new little girlfriend?"

His mother slurred as she placed her hand on Artemis's head, causing her entire body to go almost completely rigid, her hand instinctively going for the gem on her neck as she waited for Atsuko's next move. "Yusuke, she's a stiff, you probably won't get much play out of her." His mother cackled as she took a swig from the bottle of Armadale Vodka in her hand.

"No Mom, this is Artemis," Yusuke sighed as he massaged his temple slightly, glad to see Artemis take her hand away from that deadly summon gem. It was true, he did care for his mother but when she got drunk, sometimes he just wanted to pretend that she wasn't even related to him. "She was the mission that Koenma called me in for."

"I thought you said no missions until they found out who killed poor Keiko," She said in between hiccups, her cheery disposition almost immediately becoming sullen at the mention of Keiko's name

"Koenma seemed to think that this was more urgent," Yusuke said as he handed the slippers to Artemis and instructed her to put them on. "She can't speak and her has placed her in our house so that we can teach her." He explained to his mother as he watched the young girl complete her task and look up at him once more, as if she were waiting on further instructions. 

"Ohhhh," His mother slurred again, this time louder as she sauntered her way over to her son, "So just what are you planning to 'Teach' her, my son?" She cackled again as she took another swig, her face becoming more and more red the more she drank. "Just do me a favor and don't wake me up." She hiccupped loudly before waiving to Artemis, who continued to stare at the brunette until she exited into the apartment's small living room. 

Yusuke sighed heavily, regretting exposing the girl to his mother so quickly especially in such a state. He turned back to see her sitting in the exact same position that he had left her in, her gaze continuing to stare off into the direction his mother had exited. He used both hands to pull her up slightly so that she was in a standing position once again.

He smiled down at her and patted her head once again, feeling her rub against it slightly, "That was my mother, Atsuko, and don't worry she's not always like that." He said, grabbing her hand as he led her down the hallway to the kitchen. "Now come on, we should probably get some food in you."

He pulled her quickly toward the small kitchen which was located near the back of the apartment. He released her hand and made his way over to the refrigerator, "Sit down Artie, I'll cook us up something easy."

He continued to rummaged through the halfway empty refrigerator for a bit before he stopped and glanced back at her. She was standing completely still in the same place that he had left her in, her eyes dancing over the stools that were sitting at the bar. It was then that he realized that she had no idea what they were, let alone how to sit in them.

"It's ok Artie, just sit down on them, like you would a chair." He chuckled a bit as he removed eggs and milk from the refrigerator, "I guess pancakes will do, they are the only thing I really can cook" he whispered to himself as he dug through the cabinets hoping to find where his mother had hidden the mix.

As he pulled the mix from behind a large jar, he heard a light thud come from behind him. He turned around, just in time to see Artemis lift the bar stool above her head with one hand and smash it into the ground, splintering it completely. He drew in a sharp breath as he watched the powerful girl move to the next stool, apparently more determined this time to sit on it.

The scene that played out before him was almost to painful for Yusuke to watch. There she was, one of the most powerful beings ever created in the history of the three worlds, struggling to complete a simple task like sitting on a bar stool. She grasped the back of the stool firmly, sliding ever so cautiously onto one side, but sliding right back off the other landing once more quietly in the floor.

She stared at the second stool that had, in her mind, tricked her and knocked her off into the floor. She instantly lifted the stool above her head, preparing to destroy it as she had the first. This time, however, Yusuke was aware of her movements and easily snatched the stool, helping it escape it's destruction. 

"No, Artie, you are doing it all wrong," He said simply as he placed the stool back down at the bar, "It's really easy to do once you get the hang of it," He said as he demonstrated the proper way for her to sit down on the stool. She nodded her head and proceeded to do exactly as he did, even going as far as to pull her long legs up to her chest, so that her feet sat on the highest step.

"Good girl," He said quietly as he made his way over to the stove to begin preparing their meal, "I guess I could just tell Mom that she broke the stool when she was drunk, what do you think?" He chuckled as he looked over to the girl.

Artemis turned her head to him, her eyes darting from his face to the frying pan that he now held in his hand. Instantly, her body tensed as she waited for his next move, almost unsure of what this newfound weapon was.

"Don't worry," Yusuke said as he put the pan down to one side of the stove, "This is a frying pan, used for cooking," He scratched the back of his head, a large grin plastered on his face, "Though, I have seen them used on people in the past, myself included."

Artemis cocked her head to the side a bit, as if she was trying to process the information in his story. He chuckled a bit and flipped on the gas stove, causing the pilot to light and bright blue flames to surround the eye.

Instantly she was on her guard once again. She had knocked over the stool in order to get away from this mysterious flame and now sat, in a crouching position, on the small table that was used for serving food in the cramped kitchen. Her eyes narrowed dangerously as she moved her hand up to the gem that hung round her neck.

Yusuke saw where her hand was traveling to and instantly grabbed it, "Whoa there tiger, calm down," he said pulling her off of the buffet table, bringing her closer to examine the light blue flame, "It's just the stove, once again used for cooking. Think you can remember that?" He grinned and led her back to her, and watching her sit on it correctly, before making his way back to the stove.

She watched as Yusuke beat the eggs and milk into the dry powder cake mix and prepared to cook it. The more ingredients he added the closer to him she leaned, watching as he added more milk, making the powder take on a semi liquid form.

He pulled the spoon from the batter and licked some of it off, grinning at the sweet taste of the paste he had created, "Not as good as Kurama's but they'll do, I'm sure you won't mind." He said as he dipped the spoon back into the bowl and pulled out another helping, hoping to give her a bit of a treat for being so patient, "Would you like a taste?" He asked as he presented the spoon to her.

She eyed it cautiously for a few moments, her eyes darting between the spoon and Yusuke as if she was contemplating his motives. But after a few moments, the gnawing hunger which she had become aware of a little while back took over and she took the spoon in her mouth, licking it completely clean. 

Yusuke smiled as she pulled the spoon out of her mouth and placed it back, nearly diving into the bowl with it. "No more right now Artie, we gotta cook it first," He said as he struggled to pry her fingers away from the spoon. After a few moments of struggling, she became a bit bored with his antics and let go of the spoon with no fuss, although she never took her eyes off that delicious batter.

"YUUUUUSSSSKE!" A now very drunk Atsuko wailed from the living room, every syllable of his name several times longer than they should have been.

"She so damn drunk she can't get off the floor again I bet," Yusuke huffed as he turned on his heel and jogged out of the room quickly, not even thinking to check on the girl behind him.

He could feel his pulse beginning to race as he quickly made his way down to his mother, who was now sprawled out across their living room floor, a fresh bottle of gin sinking into the brown carpet. He could feel his face flush with anger and disgust as he moved to pull her from the floor and drag her to bed

"Yusuke." She slurred, her face now a light red as she hiccupped loudly causing Yusuke to cringe, "Help Mommy, to bed now dear." Every word she spoke seemed to run together, lost within numerous hiccups as she watched her son try to soak up some of the gin with a nearby towel.

Yusuke couldn't believe how utterly ridiculous his mother could be when she got some alcohol in her system. He thought that she would have quit drinking after she almost let his body burn before he could return. And sure, she had stayed clean for a while but soon, it was back to the partying once again, just like it always had been. Sleeping all day and drinking all night were her normal routine.

He hoisted her onto his back and trudged his way from the living room to across the hallway, his mother's damp brown hair clinging to the side of his face. Somewhere between the living room and her bed room she had lost consciousness and now slept peacefully even after Yusuke had tossed her onto her queen sized bed. He was kind enough to pull up the covers as to give his mother a little extra warmth.

He sighed again, and ran his hands through his slick black hair and made his way slowly back to the kitchen. That was when the thought hit him, 'Oh shit.' he cursed again as he ran off in the direction of the kitchen and the girl he had left there. He rushed into the kitchen, grinning at the sight that caught his eye.

There sitting in the middle of the floor was the white haired girl who was completely covered, head to toe, with pancake batter. Her face stared through the bottom of the glass bowl, her eyes widening as she brought the bowl down to rest in her lap, a ring of batter circling her face.

Yusuke couldn't help but chuckle at her a bit as he wet a cloth and helped her to get the batter off of her face. "Would you like to help make more?" Yusuke asked her as he pulled her off the floor and brought her toward the still burning stove.

Her eyes narrowed a bit as she watched him add milk and eggs to the powder mix once again. "First, let's put some butter in the pan, it keeps them from sticking." He said as he took a bit of the butter and tossed it into the pan. He couldn't help but smirk at her fascination with the quickly melting butter in the pan.

Instantly, she turned her gaze back to the man who was staring down at her, the strange look plastered on his face. She gazed at it for a moment before using her fingers to trace along his smirk, making his body lock up as he felt her soft fingertips against his lips. The she brought her hand to her own mouth and pushed the left corner of her mouth up, mimicking a smirk identical to his own.

"Very good Artie," Yusuke said as he placed the wooden spoon in her hand, unsure of what had made her do that, "Now, you just stir the stuff like this," He instructed as he took her hands in his and proceeded to mix the stuff more, before tipping the bowl and allowing some of the batter to pour into the pan, some of the hot butter splashing onto Artemis's exposed forearm.

"SHIT!" Yusuke cursed as he pulled Artemis to the sink and flipped on the cold water, hoping that she wasn't burned to badly, "I'm so sorry Artie!" He cried as he ran to get some ice from the freezer. Her eyes widened as she watched the young man dart from one side of the kitchen to the other, shoving the cold bag of ice onto her burned arm. She smirked again, seeing the panic look that had overtaken his features.

"Artie, this is no time for jokes," Yusuke lectured sternly as he removed the bag to inspect the burn, "You could have been hurt very seriously."

She was caught a little off guard by the tone of his voice and her face instantly faded back to it's original emotionless state. She then turned her own gaze onto the forming pustules on her arm, before turning her gaze back to Yusuke, placing her own hand over the burns. When she removed it, to the detective's surprise, the boils were gone and there was no trace of them ever being there.

"So you have healing powers?" Yusuke asked her and she cocked her head to the side again, "Never mind, I'll have to ask Koenma about that."

Suddenly, the pungent smell of smoke filled the kitchen as the black substance began to roll out of the pan, causing Artemis to go into full on defense mode again. She leapt away from the burning pancake and prepared to summon her sword once again. Yusuke, however, beat her to the smoke causing pancake and tossed the scorched food out of the window. Then, he raised the other two in hopes of clearing the smoke from the building before it set off the sprinkler system.

"Maybe we should just order some take out." Yusuke sighed dejectedly as he made his way over to the cordless phone that was suspended in it's base beside the doorway.

However, before he got there, Artemis was standing in front of him, with a very confused look on her face. She gazed at his face reaching up to his forehead and wiping a bit of soot from it with her index finger. She examined the substance on her hand very closely bringing it up to her nose to sniff it before putting in Yusuke's line of sight, waiting for his explanation.

"That's soot," Yusuke said as he wiped the stain on a hand towel, "It usually only comes when there has been a fire, or a lot of smoke."

She nodded to him as if she understood and stepped out of his way and allowed him to make the call. She became fascinated while they waited for the food with the refrigerator. She opened and closed it many times, watching the light go on each and every time. It was as if she was playing a game with the refrigerator as each time, the door speed got faster and faster, like she hoped to catch the mysterious being that was turning the light off and one.

Yusuke grinned as he watched her feeble attempt to catch the light. He hadn't realized it to just now, but Artemis was just like a child to him. Having to be taught how to do everything, always constantly wanting to learn more. The only thing she couldn't do was talk. That was when it hit him, she needed to learn how to communicate. 'That's what we will start working on tomorrow, before I go to my other job.'

He was ripped from his thoughts when he heard the sound of metal crashing into the walls of his home. He whipped his head around to see Artemis, her head cocked slightly to the side, the door handle still in her hand. He shook his head and removed the door from the wall and placed it back on it's hinges, 'Guess that's another thing I can blame on Mom's drunken rampages.'

The doorbell rang a few moments later and Yusuke left Artemis sitting at the small dinette while he went to pay the pizza guy. He returned later with the box of pizza and instantly noticed that Artemis gaze was focused intently on that pizza, as if there was nothing else in the world. As soon as he opened it, she dove at it with her entire body, almost completely knocking the box from the table.

Yusuke sighed at the thought of his lost meal, but thought of the girl who was now coated completely in an assortment of cheese, pepperoni, and pizza sauce sitting on the table before him. He couldn't believe just how much she had absorbed from being near him just for a few hours. He moved to get a wet cloth from the sink so that he could attempt to clean her up. He wiped her face softly as she continued to tear at the last piece of pizza with a ravenous hunger, so much so that Yusuke feared for his fingers.

Once she was cleaned as well as he could manage, Yusuke led her into his bedroom. "Ok Artie, you are going to sleep in my room," He rummaged through a narrow drawer in his nightstand and pulled out a pair of boxers and a overlarge t-shirt. "Here are some clothes you can sleep in. You can change in the bathroom across the hall."

He moved to leave, but when she didn't follow he turned his gaze back to her. She stood completely still, her eyes fixed on the garments in her hands, the crimson orbs going over every single inch of the fabric before turning her gaze back to Yusuke.

"What's wrong?" He asked her, this time causing her gaze to go to his face, her eyes widened in confusion as she waited for his explanation, "Oh...you don't know how to change do you?"

Many different images infiltrated Yusuke's mind all at once. On the one hand, he was just helping this girl who had no idea of how to survive on her own be more comfortable by teaching her how to change her clothes. On the other, he was about to see one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen partially naked. His cheeks flushed a bit as he looked over to the still confused girl.

"Ok, so how should I explain." Yusuke said as he began scratching his chin, "Grab the bottom of your shirt like this and pull it over your head like this," He told her and demonstrated by pulling his own shirt off.

Instantly she nodded and pulled of her own filthy and holey shirt, revealing the lacy red bra that had been hidden underneath. 'Koenma and his scientists are such perverts,' Yusuke thought angrily to himself as he noticed just how little coverage that the bra provided to her full breasts.

He shook the thoughts of her breasts from his mind as best as he could while he demonstrated how to remove the pants. Again, she followed his movements precisely and revealed a matching lace thong, which left absolutely nothing to his imagination. 

Yusuke's hormones raced wildly throughout him as he felt his boxer's beginning to tighten on against his throbbing organ. 'Shit this isn't good, gotta get her dressed and fast!' He told himself quickly and that's exactly what he did. He proceeded to show her how to get back into the clothes and before long, she stood there in front of him, fully clothed and ready for bed.

He wiped a stray sweat droplet from his brow, "Glad we got that finished." He sighed, still feeling the tightening in his pants as the pictures of her near perfect body flowed in and out of his mind freely. "Now it's time for bed."

He led her over and sat her down on the bed, she looked up at him as he pulled the covers up to her lap, "Lay down and go to sleep," he said a little forcefully, hoping to end this quickly so that he could go and relieve his throbbing erection in the bathroom.

However, she sat there, upright, her eyes gazing into his. "Fine, I'll show you." He said as he crawled into the other side of the double bed. He stretched out underneath the covers and lay the rest of the way down, waiting for her to copy his movements, "You see? Now you do it."

She complied after studying his exact position in the bed and before to long her eyes met his once more as she lay down. "Now, I'm going to go sleep in the living room alright?" He asked as he sat up. She did the same, preparing to step out of the bed just as he had. "No, Artie, you sleep here," He sighed heavily as he pushed her back into the bed.

She cocked her head to the side once more, and looked at him her glowing white hair giving off an eerie hue in the moonlight that crept in through his window. Yusuke sighed and sat down, "Would it help if I stayed here tonight?" She smirked again and copied his movements, taking her place at his side. Before long he could feel his eyelids growing heavy as he threatened to drift off into sleep.

He glanced over at the sleeping form of the girl beside him, admiring her once more before flipping over onto his left side, 'Dammit Koenma, just what have you gotten me into?'


	4. Chapter 4

Yusuke squeezed his eyelids shut tightly, trying to block out all forms of the bright sunlight that now poured through the cracked blinds in his dark room He knew that he should be getting up and getting ready, knowing that he would have to go back to work today. However, he didn't know how he felt about leaving Artemis at home alone while he worked.

'Maybe I should call in sick today….' he thought to himself as he pulled the covers up over his face, trying to block out more of the bright sunlight. 'I really shouldn't…we need that money. Maybe I can convince them to use one of my vacation days.'

However, Yusuke was pulled from the depths of his thoughts as he felt the covers being ripped away from him, allowing the bright sunlight to enter his eyes. He groaned loudly and cracked his chocolate eyes open slightly, to see a pair of crimson ones staring back at him. There was Artemis, blanket clutched firmly in her right hand staring down at Yusuke, her eyes scanning over his entire being. Without warning, she moved her hand to the small ruby around her neck, preparing to defend herself if this boy decided to attack. Yusuke sighed heavily and pulled her hand, ever so gently, away from the gem, placing it back at her side. This caused Artemis to don her new found emote, his smirk.

"Good morning to you too, Artie," Yusuke half yawned, brushing some of the girl's long white hair off of him as he stood, preparing to make his way out of the room and go about his daily routine, "You coming?" He turned an asked when he realized the genetically enhanced girl was not following him as she usually did.

She smirked once more before hopping off the bed, doing mid-air somersault and landing, lightly, just behind him. As soon as she landed, his large stretch pants that had been fit loosely at her hips fell, landing around her ankles. Yusuke grimaced slightly, trying not to think of the girl's see through black thong that had been exposed to him yet again. He sighed heavily, closed his eyes and reached down to pull the confused girl's pants back up to her waist, cinching them as tight as he could. Yusuke smiled down at the young girl who looked up at him with another smirk. He patted her head one final time before taking her hand and leading her back down the hallway to the kitchen.

"Now you sit right here, Artie," Yusuke said slowly as they entered the kitchen, gently dragging Artemis over to her appropriate bar stool and sitting her on it. "I'm going to go and check on Mom. I'll be back in a bit, alright?" He said softly, brushing a bit of her hair out of her face, staring into her deep crimson eyes.

She simply stared back at him and pulled her knees up into his large t-shirt, as if she were trying to warm herself. He grinned before exiting the room, making his way back down the hallway towards the smell of spilled Vodka that emitted from his mother's room. He coughed as the pungent smell became more and more eminent as he came to the door.

When he entered, he found his mother lying half off the bed, her face buried in the cream colored carpet of her room. He groaned as he picked his mother's completely limp body up and placed it back on the bed. Flipping on the switch to the lamp next to her bed, he began lightly shaking her, causing her to curse softly as she opened her bloodshot chocolate eyes.

"What the hell do you want?" She hissed, pulling away from him as she grasped her throbbing head, staring at the bright glowing clock on her nightstand. "Shouldn't you be at work by now?"

"Yeah, I'm calling in sick," Yusuke called to her, shaking his head as he walked to her dresser to fetch her cigarettes, "I can't leave Artemis here alone, you know that." He said softly as he tossed them to her, leaning against the old wood dresser.

"Well, I'm glad you found someone to keep her," Atsuko said, grinning at her son as she lit her cigarette, inhaling every ounce of smoke she could in a single puff, "I'm going out today. I didn't want you leaving her alone in my house." She smirked as she blew the smoke back into the air, making a few ringlets with the last of it.

Yusuke sighed once more as he exited the room, shutting the door softly behind him as he went. He knew that his mother would be going out, but it just didn't seem to bother her that this girl needed their help. He paused in midst ride as this thought made it's way into his mind. He had left Artemis sitting in the kitchen all alone for a long period of time. He took off at full speed towards the kitchen, unsure of what sort of damage the girl could have done in that amount of time.

He skidded around the corner, his socked feet almost sliding completely out from under him as he entered the kitchen, only to find a very clean kitchen, almost exactly as he had left it. The only different was that Artemis now stood at the stove, flipping a pancake in the frying pan, just as he had done the night before. She smirked back at him as she broke another egg into the mix, stirring it and the milk together as she took another pancake from the pan and placed it on the plate with the others.

"Artie, did you make all of these?" Yusuke asked as he admired the seemingly perfect pancakes that were stacked on the plate beside her, about fifteen of them all on the same stack. She smirked again placing another pancake on the stack as she moved to mix more batter.

"No Artemis," Yusuke said quickly as he took the mix out of her hand and placed the box back in the cabinet. "That's enough for now. If we want more I'll let you make them, ok?" He asked, rubbing her head as he placed the frying pan in the sink, running a bit of cool water over it.

"What would you like to drink?" He asked as he made his way back to the refrigerator, placing the milk she had been using inside the door. "How about we keep it safe and we give you water?" He asked as he pulled a chilled bottle of water from inside the door and placed it beside her stack of pancakes.

"Now I'm going to get lemonade for me," He said cheerily as he poured him a tall glass of yellow liquid from the refrigerator. Artemis' eyes seemed to light up seeing this new liquid emerge from it's deep blue container.

He admired her intrigued look as he sat the glass down beside his plate, Artemis peering down into the glass, smelling the strange liquid's aroma as it wafted to her nose. "Would you like to try it?" He asked as he pushed the glass towards her watching her pick it up and smell it again.

She gazed down into the cup for a few seconds more before placing it to her lips and taking a timid sip. Instantly she spat out the sour liquid, showering it all over Yusuke as well as the counter in front of her. Then she took her nails and began to rake them against her tongue as if she were trying to purge of her mouth of the terribly sour liquid.

"Sorry Artie," Yusuke laughed loudly as he opened her water bottle and handed it to her. She completely downed the entire bottle in a matter of seconds, causing Yusuke to laugh loudly again. "Note to self: Artemis HATES sour things."

He smiled at her as he pulled some maple syrup from the cabinet placing it on the bar in front of him. "Would you like some syrup on your pancakes?" He asked causing the girl to cock her head to the left again, her classic way of showing that she didn't understand what he was talking about.

She admired the bottle that he had pulled from the cabinet, picking it up and watching the syrup run from one side to the other as she tilted it different was. He smiled broader at her this time as he took the bottle from her. She watched his every move as he used his thumb to pop the lid of the syrup and poured a bit onto her stack of pancakes. He could feel his smile growing larger as she watched the slow moving brown liquid pouring out of the brightly colored bottle.

She turned her gaze from the nearly empty bottle to the puddle of brown liquid that had been poured over her pancakes. Yusuke stifled a laugh as he watched her lean closer to the foreign matter and smell it, confused as to what it could have been. Bringing her index finger forward, she swirled the tip around in the sticky liquid before bringing it to her face extended her tongue out to meet it. Her eyes went wide as she enjoyed the sweet taste this new found food brought to her mouth. She dipped her finger in once again and brought it to her lips, and repeated these steps a third time.

"No, Artie," Yusuke said quickly after her forth attempt to swirl her fingers in the sticky mass and just eat the syrup. "That's not how you eat pancakes." He lectured as he handed her a fork. "You have to eat the whole pancake, not just the syrup." He instructed as he cut his own pancakes and placed them in his mouth, hoping that she would follow suit.

She stared at him for a bit, before copying his every movement as she had the many times before. She cut her pancakes in the exact same location as he did and placed the triangular shaped pieces in her mouth, relishing in the sweet mixture that filled her mouth. Yusuke watched as she tore into her pancakes, her hunger obviously revealing itself to her as she ate more and more. Before Yusuke was even half done with his meal, she had cleaned her plate and now stared down at the syrup covered plate before her.

Then, without warning she shoved her face into the plate, bringing it up as she licked the sugary liquid from the plate. Yusuke leapt over the counter, trying to pry the plate out of her ridged fingers and keep her from getting too sticky. However, his leap knocked over his glass of lemonade which now spilled all over the young girl, coating her white t-shirt in a bright yellow stain.

After what seemed like an eternity of struggling with the girl, Yusuke finally managed to pry the plate from the girl's hands. He shook his head seeing the mess that Artemis had made in such a short time. She sat before him, legs drawn up onto the top step of the bar stool, coated in syrup and lemonade. Her face was smeared with the brown liquid, some of it leaking down from her eyes like sticky brown tears. Her hair was completely matted to her face at the top and soaked with lemonade at the bottom, making Yusuke heave another heavy sigh. He knew that this was coming, but he didn't expect it to come this soon. He was going to have to teach Artemis how to bathe herself.

He gulped at the thought of this as he began cleaning up the remains of their little scuffle, trying to keep his mind in check while he ran over the situation. He remembered the night before, how he had almost lost all since of self control as soon as she had removed her shirt. He had to shake the thoughts of her breasts from his mind once more, fearing that his aching erection would return to him once more.

'How the hell am I supposed to teach this girl to bathe?' Yusuke hissed in his mind as he scrubbed the plates in the sink, thoughts of her completely naked body drifting in and out of his mind, 'I mean, COME ON, I couldn't even change her clothes without getting hard…'

He looked to Artemis who now stood beside him, watching his every move as he cleaned each dish and put them in the drainer. It didn't help that Koenma and his scientists had genetically enhanced her to be one of the most beautiful creatures he had ever seen. He trembled at the thought of her being completely naked in front of him, but knew that he had no choice in the matter.

"Come on, Artemis," Yusuke said quietly as he turned the sink off, drying his hands on a hand towel before leading her out towards the hall bathroom, "We have to give you a bath to get all of this syrup off of you." He said softly again as he tried to brush some of her long white bangs out of the thick syrup that was caked around her forehead.

She smirked as the bright overhead light came on, illuminating the green and white bathroom. Yusuke searched through the hamper, hoping that his mother had found some time to wash a few towels while he had been working. Artemis couldn't help but stare down into the hamper admiring the different colors of towels that filled it almost to its brim. Almost immediately, she dove head first in after a certain one, knocking Yusuke completely out of her way. When she emerged, she was cuddling a bright red towel against her self, running her sticky fingers over its fluffy exterior. Yusuke patted her head and placed the towel on the sink, before moving to the tub and turning the water on.

'Ok, you can do this,' Yusuke mentally chanted to himself exactly fifteen times while he adjusted the water to a nice, warm temperature. 'All you have to do is get her in, get her clean, and get her out. No big.'

Artemis watched his every movement, her head tilted slightly to the side as if she were trying to contemplate why he had become so rigid. She placed her hand on the small ruby once more, preparing to defend herself against any attack.

As if he instinctively sensed this, Yusuke lifted his hand to her, signaling that everything was alright. He didn't not turn to face her, but rather waited to see if she could interpret this signal on her own. As if on cue, he heard her shuffling lightly behind him and placed her hands back at her side, her eyes still trained on the back of the man in front of her.

Yusuke took a deep breath as he turned the water off, unsure if he was ready to take on what could have possibly been his toughest mission yet. He tugged off his shirt to prevent it from getting to wet should she decide to struggle. Once he decided that he was ready to begin, he turned around to face the bright crimson eyed girl, who's appearance had been slightly altered with the addition of the syrup.

"Ok, now how do I explain this," Yusuke thought out loud, scratching the back of his un-gelled head lightly, "We have to give you a bath. A bath is something that you take when you get dirty which is usually once a day." He said in a monotone voice as he grabbed her hand, pulling her closer to the tub.

"This is a bath tub," He explained showing her the now water filled tub, "This is where you take baths and showers," He said quickly feeling his face growing increasingly hot as he approached the next step in bathing.

However, Artemis, was fascinated by this new discovery called the 'bath tub'". She kneeled down beside him, running her hands along the cold sides of the porcelain tub dipping the tips of her fingers in the water as she went. She made a move to dive into the tub clothes and all but Yusuke caught her mid-dive, holding her tightly until she stopped struggling.

"You have to take your clothes off first, Artie," He barely managed to whisper out as his heart began to pound within in his chest at the thought of this girl being completely naked in front of him in a manner of moments.

She smirked in his direction, proving that she had understood what he said. She managed to peel her sticky hair from her shirt and pull it over her head, leaving her standing in her lacy bra. Then, just as he had shown her the night before, she untied her large stretch pants and allowed them to drop to the floor, revealing the bra's matching thong.

Yusuke groaned as soon as his sweatpants wrapped around her ankles. He cursed Koenma and his scientists for creating this girl to be so beautiful and then sticking him with the job of teaching her. He couldn't help but enjoy the sight of her breasts moving slightly with every movement that she made. He felt an all to familiar tightening against his boxer shorts, making him push the thought far from his mind.

"Ok, Artie, you have to take the others off as well," Yusuke said quickly, looking at the confused girl before him. He could feel his face growing hotter and hotter by the moment as he stared at her exposed body. She cocked her head to the side once more, causing Yusuke to groan, unable to think of a way to explain how to get these off to her.

Yusuke sighed, when the thought of how the remove them came to him. He felt the tightening become more and more prominent as he stepped closer to the half naked girl, and wrapped his arms around her, undoing her bra clasps. Instantly, he regretted the decision to do it from the front as he full breasts literally burst from their holding places, her slightly erect nipples brushing against his bare chest.

His entire body became covered in goose bumps at the feel of her nipples brushing against him. Immediately, he pushed away from her, the erection becoming more and more painful with each passing moment that she stood before him. However, she had no idea that he was suffering so, because she was to distracted by this new body part he had uncovered. She smirked as she used one hand to push her left breast to the side, watching it recoil and go back into it's correct position.

"No, Artie, you shouldn't do that!" Yusuke nearly shouted as he grasped her hand firmly and placed it back at her side. Honestly, he was having enough trouble keeping his hormones in check as it was…did she really have to go and play with the things that were causing him so much trouble.

She smirked at him and waited for his next instruction. "Right….that's called taking off your bra," he said as he placed his fingers on the strap of her thong, preparing just to rip them down and not even look. "And this is called taking off your underwear," he said softly.

On the count of three, Yusuke slammed his eyes shut and pulled down the black thong, waiting until he felt her step out of it before rising. His mind raced at the thought of sharing a bathroom with a completely naked girl, urging him just to take a small peek at the girl in front of him.

Suddenly, he was startled by the sounds of a loud splash, followed by him being soaked with water. He opened his eyes quickly, seeing the completely naked Artemis, sitting before him in the bath tub, legs crossed slightly, which kept him from seeing any more of her naked form than he already had. He sighed loudly, both in relief and disappointment at this revelation as he leaned across to get the bar of soap and a wash rag.

"This is a bar of soap," He said as he handed it to her, letting her run it between her fingers as he spoke, "It's nothing fancy, just a regular piece of soap. Maybe we can go and pick you out something that smells good later…" He said as he leaned forward, unconsciously trying to get a better view of the area between Artemis' legs.

Thunk. That was all he heard, but it was enough to bring his view back to Artemis' face and away from her naked body. She stared down at the soap that lay in the tub with her, now between her feet. She smirked and picked it up again and it slipped again, this time, falling out of the tub and into Yusuke's lap. Before he could grab it, Artemis had retrieved it herself, he delicate fingers brushing against Yusuke's erection causing him to moan loudly.

"Like I was saying," Yusuke tried to continue, instinctively taking the soap from Artemis hand and holding it up in her line of sight, "You use the soap with the wash rag to was your body." He grinned as he began rubbing the soap on the cloth creating a few big clear bubbles along with the later.

Artemis was most entertained by the sudden appearance of the bubbles. She stuck her face right up against the rag in Yusuke's hand, watching the bubbles appear and disappear. She stuck her index finger up to one instinctively, watching it pop as soon as she touched it.

"Those are bubbles, Artie," Yusuke said softly as he placed the was rag into her hand, "Now, all you have to do is rub this all over your body, the soap helps to get you clean. Make sure to scrub anywhere you think might be extra dirty." He explained as he motioned to her sticky face and arms.

Artemis smirked at Yusuke for a moment, before turning her gaze to the red cloth that sat in her hand. She squeezed it tightly in her grasp, causing some residual water to drip out into the tub. She smirked at this and placed the rag into her mouth, immediately connecting it with something to drink.

"No Artie!" Yusuke shouted, ripping the rag from her mouth, causing her to splash water all over him as well as the bathroom floor, "We don't drink the water from here or the bath tub. This is used for washing."

Yusuke swallowed hard as he realized that he was going to have to literally bathe her in order to maker her understand. His erection throbbed even more at this thought, the fact that his hands would soon be exploring the curvaceous body of a beautiful young woman. He re-lathered the rag with the bar of soap and instantly went to work on washing her body, trying not to think about the act to much.

He started on her face, scrubbing some of the residual pancakes and syrup from it, freeing some of her trapped hair to make its way back to her sides. Moving his way down, he scrubbed her arms and hands thoroughly, for they had been the possibly the dirtiest part of her body. Then he quickly brushed across her breast, feeling them move slightly at his touch and recoil back to their original positions.

He traced his way to her stomach, being sure to get inside of her deep belly button, causing her to cast a strange look in his direction. His heart pace quickened as he slid the rag between he legs, revealing the small white ringlets that stood at her entrance. He could feel sweat beginning to pour from his brow as he looked at the naked woman before him.

'I can't keep this up.' He told himself mentally as he poured a cup of water over her head, hoping to free up some of her syrup stained hair. 'I just need to wash her hair and get out of here, before I do something I know I'm going to regret.'

The next few moments, Yusuke refused to think as he poured some of his own shampoo and conditioner on her head, beginning to roughly scrub her head. Not bothering to explain, Yusuke hoped she would understand how to do this and continued on with his mission. All he wanted right now was to get this over and done with so that he could relieve the aching tension between his legs. As soon as he rinsed her hair with the cup, not even bothering to re-rinse he hoisted her surprising light body from the tub. In one swift motion he wrapped the towel around her, hiding her body from him and ending his torture.

Suddenly, the soft sound of someone clearing their throat came from behind the pair. Artemis' eyes went wide as Yusuke turned to see his boss, the Prince of Spirit world, staring at his half naked Spirit Detective and the naked girl behind him. Yusuke mentally cursed himself, knowing that now he would have to deal with his erection rather than enjoying it.

"Yusuke," Koenma stood in his teenage form, his face growing redder by the moment, "What are you doing?" He asked as he looked back to Artemis who stood behind Yusuke, confused as to what was going on. "You know what, forget it. I need you two in The Reikai NOW!" He roared as he summoned a blue portal and stepped through it, pulling the half dressed detective and Artemis along with him.


	5. Chapter 5

"WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING?" Koenma's voiced echoed down the walls of his glorious palace as he threw the detective into a chair in front of his desk. He ran his fingers angrily through his mussed auburn hair as he paced around the detective, waiting for what he hoped would be a good explanation to the situation he had just walked in on.

"Koenma," Yusuke stated in a soft, almost uncharacteristic voice, "I promise you, it's not what you think." The shirtless detective said almost as softly as he had the first statement, not bothering to look up from the gaze he had set on his blue slippers.

"Oh please, Yusuke," Koenma scoffed as he made his way back to his window, barely containing his anger as he stared out at some birds that flew by, "You expect me to believe, that you were just bathing her? Seriously, that is the worst excuse you could have ever given me."

The prince sighed heavily as the memories of what had happened a moment ago rushed through his mind's eye once more. He had gone to find out how Artemis had been adjusting to her new life on the outside world, only to find that this detective he had entrusted her to had been taking advantage of her.

What made things worse was the fact that Artemis just sat there, staring up at the both of them, wide eyed and completely naked. The sight that was even more sickening to Koenma, was the very noticeable bulge that had formed in Yusuke's pants.

"Koenma," Yusuke spoke again, startling the prince from his livid thought process, causing the prince's gaze to fall upon the detective once more, "I know what the whole scene looked like, but I promise you that was all that was going on."

Koenma huffed at his detectives failed attempt to convince him as he made his way over to his great leather chair and sat down. He laced his fingers and placed his elbows on a desk and closed his eyes, trying to prevent yet another outburst.

"I would like to believe that, Yusuke," Koenma started off softly, his face turning red with each passing moment as he tried to suppress the anger that was freely flowing throughout his entire body. "However, I also know how you are with women, and your tendencies to be slightly lecherous."

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?" Yusuke shouted as he nearly flew across the desk, trying his best to grab Koenma by the throat. He grasped a bit of the ruler's collar and tossed him, nearly effortlessly across the room, before grabbing him again and pushing him against the wall, causing Koenma's skull to make a sickening cracking noise against the hard wall. "WHEN I SAY THAT'S WHAT HAPPENED THAT'S WHAT HAPPENED!"

"Are you trying to convince me, or yourself, Yusuke?" Koenma asked quickly as he pushed the detective off of him, trying to regain control of this situation. He straightened his clothes out quickly as he shot a glare across at the now livid detective, "You can say what you want, however, I know the answer to that question."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Yusuke nearly hissed as he stared back at the Prince who continued to straighten his collar.

"Yusuke, the bulge in your pants spoke for itself. I know exactly what your intentions were and to be honest I am absolutely appalled." Koenma replied shortly as he began stomping back to his desk, "I know you have been sexually frustrated since Keiko's accident, but to be honest…"

Koenma never got to finish his statement before he was thrown once more into the wall, Yusuke's scarred fingers wrapped tightly around his neck, preventing oxygen from entering. He struggled against the tightening grip of the detective, as the world around him became more and more hazy.

"You listen to me, Keiko's death has nothing to do with this. I was merely taking care of the girl, just as you had asked me to." Yusuke hissed as he dropped the Prince to the floor, his demon side savoring the sound of Koenma wheezing, gasping for the precious oxygen he had been deprived of. "She had gotten pancake syrup all over her, so I decided to give her a bath. That's all" Yusuke hissed once more as he turned away from Koenma, who was now struggling to pull himself off the floor.

"You can't tell me, you weren't taking advantage of her situation." Koenma gasped as he used the bookcase behind him to sturdy himself as he stood, "If you weren't you would have called Botan, or Yukina. They would have been glad to assist you."

This thought caught Yusuke off guard a bit as he sank back into his chair. Was Koenma right? Had he really just taken advantage of Artemis's situation by not thinking it through and rushing her in there to get her clothes off? This thoughts struck through Yusuke's entire body, causing him to rethink everything he had done over the last few days.

"Yusuke," Koenma started once more, this time more softly as he made his way back over to the window on the opposite end of his office, "I would like to put this matter aside for a brief moment while we discuss why I brought you here."

Yusuke's eyes lit up at this sudden change of tone in the teen ruler's voice. He knew exactly why he had been called her, and the thought of his newest mission sent chills throughout his body. It had been so long since he'd had a good workout that he was beginning to wish for some demon to attack the human world every day, just so he would have a chance to do something.

"What's going on, Koenma?" Yusuke said quickly, his blood racing through his body at the chance to fight once more. His mazoku side had long since been locked away and it pushed against the barrier he had put up, aching to get out in the field and get some blood on his hands.

"I'm afraid it's not much, Yusuke," Koenma said quickly as he pulled a manila folder from his desk and tossed it to the detective. "This one has been causing my guards a great deal of trouble as of late, and I thought you would like the opportunity to get out and stretch your muscles a bit."

Yusuke's heart leapt at this idea as he anxiously flipped open the folder and began scanning through the limited amount of data that had been collected. He stared at the picture of the demon for a brief moment. He had short, choppy hair that stuck up at an odd angle in the back, while simultaneously hanging in his face, hiding the only feature that would betray his demon heritage. The next picture revealed his shimmering silver eyes that were hid beneath the bangs, in the first.

He continued flipping through the folder coming upon the statistics of the demon named Kougeki, a descendent of the shadow clan from the northeast sector of demon world. This had been identified by the intricate tattoo designs that were dispersed along his entire body, wrapping around his entire form.

The attacks were what excited Yusuke the most out of the entire process. Each attack seemed more and more horrifying than the previous, making Yusuke bounce in anticipation of this battle. He had never faced a full blooded shadow demon before, and from looking at the statistics in Koenma's folder, few of his men had survived this one.

"So what is it that you are wanting me to do, Koenma?" Yusuke asked as he shut the folder and tossed it back onto Koenma's desk. "What kind of mission are we talking about here."

"I would say that this would be a capture mission, but this demon has caused to much damage to be left alive…" Koenma said silently as he placed the folder back into the drawer on the side of his desk. "I want you, to kill him."

Yusuke's heart nearly leapt out of his chest at this order coming directly from Koenma himself. Yusuke almost regretted everything that he had done to Koenma in the moments before this. The thought of the Prince of the Reikai allowing him to go out and take care of one of the most notorious demons in the Reikai was almost like a badge of honor to Yusuke.

"Don't you worry, Koenma!" Yusuke cheered as he jumped up from his chair and began making his way towards the door, "I will make sure this guy never harms another one of your guards or anyone else ever again!"

"Wait just a moment, Yusuke," Koenma said somberly, stopping Yusuke from flinging the door open and dashing out. "There is something else that the two of us need to discuss."

Yusuke looked back at the prince, confused at the sudden change in the tone of his voice, before he made his way back to his chair and sat down. "What is the matter Koenma? I want to go ahead and finish this guy, because I was planning on taking Artie to the park later this evening."

"Yusuke, I think I made a mistake placing Artemis in your care." Koenma said quickly as he leaned over and began rummaging through the drawers that lined his desk once more, pulling out the red folder that had been put back into his desk for safe keeping. He didn't look up from the hardened gaze he had set on the fold as he produced a pen and began to write feverishly in the folder.

Yusuke sat back into his chair for a brief moment as he contemplated the words that Koenma had just uttered. How could he take Artemis away from him after only such a short time? Sure, the mishap with the bath thing had not been a good experience, but he was only doing what he thought was best for her. Was that honestly such a bad thing?

"I will be reassigning her to Kuwabara and Yukina." Koenma's statement pulled Yusuke from his thoughts once more, feeling his heart growing heavier by the minute, "You will be assisting them in keeping her safe from now on." He said quickly as he scribbled this note into the folder before stamping his sign of approval to it.

Yusuke felt as if his heart had been stomped on when Koenma brought that stamp to the paper. The thought of losing this girl he had become so attached to in such a short time was enough to make him want to strangle the prince all over again. Was he really such a bad guardian that Koenma would take her away from him, after only two days? He could feel his stomach tying itself into knots as he watched Koenma put the folder back into his desk.

"You will still be permitted to see her, however, not without supervision. I think this is best for her well being." Koenma said softly as he looked up at the silent detective, his heart aching at the sight of the saddened look that had appeared on his usually carefree face. He silently rose and made his way over to Yusuke, placing a hand gently on his shoulder. "I know it doesn't seem like it right now, but trust me. This is the best thing for her."

Yusuke sighed heavily as he shrugged Koenma's hand off of his shoulder before standing and making his way to the door. "I expect you to help move her as soon as you return. I figure it will be less stressful for her that way."

Yusuke said nothing in response to this instruction. He simply shrugged his shoulders and made his way out of the great wooden doors, closing them softly behind him. Koenma sighed as he made his way back to his chair and sat down, wondering silently to himself if he had really made the right decision.

With Yusuke

Yusuke stomped angrily down the palace hallway as he made his way towards the exit, many question plaguing his mind. How dare he? How dare he take away this girl who he had placed in his charge only a short time ago? Was the prince honestly trying to cause him more grief than he'd already had to deal with. Hadn't he suffered enough?

That's when doubt began to surface in Yusuke's mind. Maybe Koenma was right. Maybe he was still unstable since Keiko had been killed and transferring all of the emotions he had bottled up for so long to this girl. Should he be punished for trying to help this girl, and his emotions getting in the way? He was honestly trying to do what was best for the girl, no matter what Koenma thought.

Suddenly, Yusuke's thoughts were interrupted when he ran into someone slightly shorter than him. "Yusuke, what the hell are you doing?" Botan hissed as she began scrambling to pick up the load of papers she had been carrying. "Look at the mess you've made!" She lectured as she tried desperately to rearrange the paperwork in her arms.

"I'm sorry, Botan," He said quietly as he knelt down to help her pick up the papers. "Please forgive me."

This sudden soft spoken apology from Yusuke really confused Botan, so much so that she dropped all of the papers she had picked up. "Are you ok, Yusuke?" She asked as she stared into his chocolate eyes, detecting slight amounts of sadness hiding behind them.

"No, it's fine." Yusuke said, even more softly than the first, as he continued gathering papers and stacking them in a pile beside Botan.

Botan's bubblegum eyes narrowed slightly, showing her irritation with this man who was doing a poor job at hiding his emotions. "Yusuke, for goodness sake, I've known you far to long and I know something is up."

"It's really nothing Botan," Yusuke said quietly as he finished stacking the papers before pushing himself off the floor, "Now, if you don't mind, I have to get on a mission that Koenma just assigned me to."

"Ok, Yusuke," Botan said quickly as she got up from the floor and wrapped her arms gently around his neck, squeezing him tightly. "She's in your old room in the living area, if you would like to see her." Botan whispered into his ear before releasing him. He stared down at her for a moment before walking briskly in the direction of his old bedroom, hoping to say goodbye to her before he left.

He rounded the corner and made his way to the door, flinging it open to reveal a very confused Artemis, sitting, fully clothed on his bed staring up at him. It was obvious that Botan had a hand in dressing her, because everything was so color coordinated. The black shirt that she was wearing brought attention to the beautiful white locks that had been neatly tied away from her face, allowing a clear view of her bright crimson eyes.

She smirked up at him as he made his way over to the bed, sitting down gently beside her. How could he make her understand that she would no longer be staying with him? Once more, the thought ate Yusuke up inside as he sat in silence for a long time staring at the wall. It was true, she had only been with him for a short time, but just seeing her learn so much over the last two days had made Yusuke feel that he could actually accomplish something, without the help of his team. In two days she had given Yusuke the confidence boost that he had been missing since Keiko died.

"Hey Artie," Yusuke finally greeted as he brought his hand up to her head and scratched behind her left ear, making her lean closer to his hand, appreciating the attention he was showing her.

"Listen Artie, I have to tell you something." Yusuke said quickly, stopping scratching and turning her face to him, making sure she was looking dead at him. Her crimson eyes widened with confusion as she cocked her head to the side, almost as if she were waiting for him to explain the situation to her.

"Well, there's been a change of plans," Yusuke said softly as he scratched the back of his head, trying to think of the words to say that might help her understand. She looked up at him for a brief moment, confused as to why he stopped talking to her, her lips curling back up into a smirk.

Before Yusuke could open his mouth, she grabbed his arm and drug him over to the bathroom sink, pointing at the mirror excitedly. The sight of her watching herself move back and forth in the mirror brought a small smile to Yusuke's face. He couldn't believe how fast she was learning these things.

'Maybe she will be better off without me.' he thought silently to himself as he continued to watch, the smile on is face slowing fading into non existence. Artemis, noticing this, smirked once more and picked up a brush that was lying beside the sink and thrust it into his face.

"And just what are you going to do with that?" He asked playfully as he cocked his head to the side, almost mocking the way that she portrayed her confusion to him.

She smirked even broader as she brought the blue brush to his hair and began to brush it gently. He couldn't help but smile once more seeing the look in her eyes as she encountered some of the residual gel that had been left in his hair from the night before.

He sighed as he pulled her hands away from his hair and placed the brush back on the counter before escorting her back to the bed and sitting her down. "Listen to me, Artie, You won't be able to stay with me anymore." He said quickly, knowing that she wouldn't understand, but feeling that he had to get it off of his chest.

She stared at him, seeing the sadness that overtook all of his features confused her. She brought her hand up to his furrowed brow and ran her fingers along them, and the pushed her brows so that they matched his. Then, she turned her attention to his lips, which she then imitated on her own.

Yusuke sighed heavily, seeing her learn always made him want to smile. "This emotion is called sadness." He explained almost out of habit now, "If something makes you feel bad, this is how you would show it." It was as simple as he could put it. He knew that emotions were far more complex than that, but just seeing her being able to mock them was good enough for him.

"Listen to me for a minute, Artie," He said softly as he turned her face back to him, staring into her bright crimson eyes, "I'm not going to be able to take care of you anymore, but, I will come and see you, ok?"

He knew that she wouldn't understand this notion, however, she pretended as if she did and nodded her head, agreeing with his statement. Somehow, just being able to say it to her, even if she didn't understand, made Yusuke feel better about the whole situation.

He pushed himself off of the bed and extended his hand down to her. "Do you remember the handshake I taught you the very first time we met?" He asked as he brushed a bit of her hair from her face, making her smirk once more. Almost instinctively she grasped his hand and began shaking it, just as she had been instructed the first time.

"Some people do this when they say goodbye as well," Yusuke said softly as he continued shaking her hand, looking down into her deep crimson eyes, "Goodbye Artemis, I will see you soon." 

He released he hand and made his way towards the door, feeling an overwhelming sense of sadness washing over his entire being. "Artemis, there is one more thing I want you to try to do." He said, turning back to her for a moment, trying to make sure she understood. "I want you to be a good girl for Kuwabara and Yukina, they will take care of you better than I ever could."

Almost as if she sensed his sadness she stood from the bed and walked over to him, placing a hand gently on his shoulder. Then, she formed her sad faced, just as he had earlier. This made his grin once more, "Don't forget me ok?" He said quickly as he patted her head before exiting the room in a quick fashion, not want to drag out the sad goodbye any longer.

He shut the door quickly behind him only to run face first into yet another person. "Damnit! What is it with me and running into people today?" He cursed out loud as he ran his fingers over the lump that was appearing in the middle of his forehead.

"Just what did you think you were doing in there?" Koenma asked sharply his chocolate gaze boring into his detectives. "Did I not just finish saying you were not to see her without supervision?"

"Koenma," Yusuke said softly, feeling his rage boiling inside of him once more as he tried his best to contain it within him, "I didn't do anything to her. I was merely trying to explain the situation to her. Figured it would be less stressful for all of us that way."

"You expect me to believe that?" Koenma nearly shouted as he placed himself in front of the detective who was trying to walk away from their conversation, "Artemis doesn't understand language, how can you expect me to believe that excuse?"

"I expect you to trust me." Yusuke said quickly, not bothering to turn and face the young ruler, "I know what you think, and trust me, I know what it looks like. But I can assure you, NOTHING happened between Artemis and me." Yusuke said harshly, feeling his stomach lurch once more when he thought about leaving Artemis in the care of another, "I've become very attached, but I agree, it's best that she stay with Kuwabara and Yukina."

"I'm glad you are seeing things my way, for once," Koenma said quickly as he made his way to the door, brushing passed his still angry detective. "You'll see, things will be much easier this way. I know you have another job to attend to, and this will open up your schedule, make things less complicated for you."

Yusuke did nothing but shrug as he made his way towards the end of the hall, turning to head out of the palace doors. It was true, he would have his old life back again and being able to go back to work would be nice. Still, he couldn't help but think that his life would be very boring without having Artemis around to mix things up a bit. He sighed as he pushed the large doors open and stepped into the portal that had been prepared to take him to demon world. 


	6. Chapter 6

Yusuke hissed loudly, feeling Kougeki's blade penetrated deep within his left leg, almost effectively pinning him to the ground. "What's the matter detective?" Kougeki purred as he brushed some of his long ebony locks from his shimmering silver eyes, "Have you decided to give up and die on me already?"

Yusuke paused for a moment before responding, "No, Kougeki," He hissed once more, as he wrapped his scarred fingers around the hilt of the blade and began pulling with all of his might, sending more of his crimson life force spilling out onto the ground around him, "I'm just getting warmed up!"

With one final burst of energy, Yusuke freed his leg from the metallic grip that the sword held on him, causing his blood to pool around him. Smirking, he tossed the bloodstained sword back to its master, "You may need this."

"You are a fool, Yusuke," Kougeki his as he wiped some of the detective's residual blood on his black pants. As soon as the blade was clean, he flew at Yusuke, not giving the detective enough time to get off of the ground.

Yusuke placed his hands up in a defensive stance, easily escaping the majority of damage that would have been caused by Kougeki's blade. Then he caught the shadow demon by his hair, tossing him casually from side to side before letting him go, allowing him to skid across from him. Yusuke panted heavily, instinctively placing his hand over the still bleeding wound on his upper leg. He could feel his body beginning to grow weaker with each moment, and knew that if he didn't end this soon; things could go very badly for him.

While Yusuke was contemplating his current situation, Kougeki had charged again, this time, his sword drawn back and at the ready, preparing to run Yusuke through. The detective barely managed to barrel roll out of the way, while firing his trademarked spirit gun, singeing the shadow demon's spiky black hair, causing him to go on a rampage and charge the wounded detective again.

Yusuke dove out of the way of his assailant, barely being missed by a perfectly executed strike that would have taken his head completely off his shoulders. Just as Yusuke moved to counterattack with his shotgun, Kougeki sank into the shadow of a tree just a few feet away from Yusuke. Pain throbbed from his still bleeding leg as he pulled himself to his feet the trunk of a nearby tree to stabilize himself. He stood there for what seemed like hours, waiting silently for the crafty shadow demon to show himself.

"Looking for me?" The demon's voice came out as a low, almost inaudible whisper as he emerged from the shadow that Yusuke's body formed on the tree, pulling the detectives arm's into the tree and through the sides, sealing the struggling detective in his place.

"Yusuke, you disappoint me," Kougeki said with a light chuckle as he made his way to stand in front of the injured detective. "I was expecting so much more of a challenge from you, the great Yusuke Urameshi."

Yusuke struggled valiantly against the tight bark that had been seal around his upper limbs. "What are you talking about?" he spat as he tried to free himself from the trunk of the tree, feeling his knuckles digging into the ground behind him as he struggled harder.

"It's a well known fact that you are the one who destroyed Sensui," Kougeki said quickly, mock applauding his captive as a smirk became plastered on his face as he stared at the weakening detective, "And yet here you sit, completely trapped by someone of a lesser class than Sensui. Care to explain that to me, detective?"

Yusuke knew very well what the problem was with him today, why he had been so careless and allowed himself to become injured. He was still distracted by the thought of Artemis not being able to stay with him any longer. He knew that he should be putting his full effort into this fight, silently hoping that Koenma would change his mind and allow the girl to return to his guardianship. However, he knew that the dense and pompous leader would never admit that he was wrong, let alone apologize to Yusuke after what he had said. Knowing that this fight was a lost cause, almost made Yusuke want to ask Kougeki to end his suffering right then and there.

"Are you still mourning the death of your lost love Keiko?" Kougeki purred as he strode just inches away from Yusuke normal kicking range.

"WHAT DO YOU KNOW YOU BASTARD?" Yusuke's voice echoed throughout the great forest as he slid his body down the trunk of the tree, nearly dislocating his own shoulders at the chance to land one kick on the smirking demon before him.

"Wow, you really haven't figure things out yet, have you?" He asked again, chuckling at the sight of Yusuke's bulging shoulders, looking as if they were to come out of their respective joints at any moment. "Then by all means, don't let me spoil all of the fun for you."

"Listen to me, you sick bastard," Yusuke said almost silently, feeling tears welling up in his eyes as the memory of Keiko's mangled body flooded his memory once more. "If you don't tell me what you know, I swear you will live to regret the day you ever messed with Keiko…and me."

"As much as I would like to share my secrets with you," The shadow demon stopped for a brief moment to brush some stray hair from his eyes, revealing his inherited silver eyes for a split second, "I believe you should tell me the truth about what's bothering you. If you do, I will be sure to tell you all I know about Keiko's death."

Yusuke stopped struggling for a moment and stared up into the face of his captor, contemplating this decision. Would he really be able to give him any information on Keiko's death? The thought of being able to bring her killer down was enough to make Yusuke throw any other thoughts out the window.

"Ah it must be that little girl that you've been taking care of over the last few days, what was he name again?" Kougeki asked as he feigned a thinking pose, "Oh yes, that delightful little creature named Artemis."

Yusuke's eyes widened and his entire body tensed at the sound of Kougeki uttering her name. Artemis had been transferred over to him in secret and she had not left his apartment since that day. How could he, someone who had been supposedly murdering masses in the Makai for months, have this kind of information?

"Ah, so that's it then." Kougeki said with a slight chuckle as he stooped down, crouching in front of the bewildered detective, "Apparently you aren't the best guardian if I know about her then, am I right?"

"You're wrong," Yusuke hissed softly, casting his gaze to the ground, hoping to hide his doubt from the demon's piercing gaze, "I'm the best guardian for Artemis." He said softly, "Kuwabara won't be able to do half the job I can." He muttered to himself, low enough to prevent Kougeki from hearing.

"Then why is it that she's being taken away from you? Would you care to explain that to me?" Kougeki teased as he landed a hard punch to Yusuke's stomach, causing Yusuke's torso to lurch forward in an unnatural manner, his shoulders making a loud popping noise, threatening to come out of place once more.

Yusuke sighed heavily, feeling a small trickle of blood escape his mouth and roll down the side of his chin. He began to feel his world swimming around him from the blood loss, and was almost sure that he would be dead within the next hour if he couldn't escape this demon. He looked anxiously around him, trying to find some way, anyway to escape this predicament.

"Don't worry, Yusuke," Kougeki teased once more as he forced the young man's chin up, making sure his silver gaze stared into the chocolate eyes of his captive, "I will make sure you're little girl is well taken care of after you are gone."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Yusuke hissed as he wrenched his face out of the demon's grasp, cringing at the many thoughts of what sick dreams this demon could be creating in his head at the very moment.

"Why, someone will need to take care of little Artemis as soon as you are gone," He chuckled as he tossed a bit of dirt into the detectives eyes, causing him to hiss loudly, "I mean, it's pretty obvious that idiot Koenma can't do it. I mean, he couldn't protect her the two times before."

He drifted away from the struggling detective for a moment, hoping to savor his torture a bit before he ended his life. "As soon as you are out of the way, I will make sure to take her away from that horrible excuse for a ruler." He couldn't help but stifle a chuckle hearing the detective struggling behind him, "Just imagine having the power that she possesses, and it would all be under my control!"

"And what a glorious body!" he continued, watching the detective continue struggling, his blue aura beginning to encircle him, "One can only imagine what sort of pleasure he could get from a girl how knows nothing about such things. I could make her do practically anything!" Kougeki laughed harder this time, closing his eyes, as ideas of a completely nude Artemis did everything exactly as he asked. The thought of her perfect body standing stark naked in front of him was enough to make his blood boil, an extreme tightness in his pants bringing him back to the present.

"I can almost taste those perky breasts now…" However before he could finish this statement, his heart became filled with shock, and absolute horror. There before him as he opened his eyes sat a very angry spirit detective. Yusuke's aura had become so great that it was creating a giant crater around him and Kougeki.

"Listen to me now, you sick fuck," Yusuke spat vehemently as he pounded his fist into the ground behind him, "I'm giving you you're final warning. You will stop speaking about Artemis in that manner, UNDERSTAND?" Yusuke shouted the last word, unleashing a wave of his energy around him, pushing the unsuspecting Kougeki back, making him stumble on his own two feet.

"Oh, so now you decide to defend her?" Kougeki spat back as he pushed himself back to his feet, "So soon you forget that you are mere hours from death, and you won't be around to protect her!"

Yusuke said nothing at this point. He merely bowed his head to the demon before him, causing a broad smirk to appear on Kougeki's face once more. Suddenly, the sound of splintering wood echoed throughout the forest, causing a look of horror to replace Kougeki's smirk. Before he could react, Yusuke had shattered the massive tree and flown at him, seizing him by the throat.

The next events in the attack flew by so fast that anyone standing nearby would have never been able to see it for themselves. Yusuke easily tossed the confused demon from one side of the clearing to the other, never letting go of the pitiful demons hair. Then he tossed him carelessly into the air and landed a swift kick to his gut, before hitting him in the spine and sending him plowing into the crater below, making an even deeper imprint in the center of the hole.

Yusuke wasn't finished yet, as he went into the imprint after the demon, pushing him up through the layers of rubble until bursting forth in the center of the crater. Seizing the bloodied demon by his matted hair, he repeatedly swung his victim into the ground over and over again, enjoying the sound of his victim's cracking bones with each hit.

Then, as suddenly as it began, it stopped. Kougeki opened his silver eyes to see a smirking Yusuke, holding him at eye level by his hair. "Are you disappointed now, Kougeki?" Yusuke chuckled at the struggling demon, which was barely clinging to life, "Maybe next time you'll think twice before messing with the great Yusuke Urameshi." He chuckled as he tossed the limp body of the demon into the air and fired a massive spirit gun attack at him, disintegrating his entire body.

Yusuke panted heavily and flopped onto the soft ground below, trying to cope from such a strenuous attack. It was true that he had just used all of the energy he had to fire that single shot, however, calling upon his mazoku side had simultaneously healed all of his wounds. Now a new sinking feeling took over his very soul. In a few short moments, he would be back in spirit world, and he would have to say goodbye to Artemis for real this time. The sickening feeling that he had become so accustomed to over the last few hours greeted him with unbridled force as he mulled the thoughts of leaving he innocent demon behind.

"Koenma," he said hoarsely into his communicator, "Can you get me a portal back to the Reikai, please?" He whispered even softer this time as he thought of how he could best move her to his best friend's house, without upsetting her any more than she probably already would be. He pushed himself off the ground and stepped through the swirling vortex, into the grand palace of the Reikai, where he was greeted by Koenma.

"Hello again, Yusuke," Koenma said in a stern tone as he straightened his collar, "I trust that everything has been settled in the Makai?" He asked in a skeptical tone as he eyed Yusuke's dingy and bloodied clothes.

"Nothing but the best for you, your grace," Yusuke hissed as he pushed his way past Koenma and down the hall towards his former room. He had to make sure that he was the one who moved Artemis, that way he could be sure that no one was stalking them and he could be sure that she was safe.

"I don't think it wise for you to take her alone," Koenma said quietly as he stepped in front of the speeding detective, "remember, you are not to be alone with her." He lectured Yusuke, who's face had already began to turn several shades of red as he tried not to give Koenma the same treatment that he had given to Kougeki.

"Of course not sir," Yusuke said while he mocked a curtsy, making the young ruler turn an angry shade of red, "I would never dream of breaking your rules sir, not in a million years." He said, feigning a southern bell's voice.

"Oh of course you wouldn't," Koenma said irritably as he tried not to let his temper get the better of him again today, "Because you've already proven yourself so many times in the past." He hissed loudly, stepping in front of the door, preventing Yusuke from entering, "Which is why I already assigned Botan to move Artemis into Kuwabara and Yukina's house. I didn't want to trouble you."

"You BASTARD!" Yusuke shouted at the teen as he flared his aura once again, sending the teen flying away from him in an opposite direction, "YOU TOLD ME I WOULD BE ALLOWED TO HELP HER MOVE! THAT IT WOULD BE LESS STRESSFUL THAT WAY! WHAT THE FUCK IS YOUR PROBLEM?" Yusuke ranted at his boss, who did nothing but push himself off the ground and dust the back of his pants.

How could that sorry bastard have moved Artemis without allowing him to say goodbye to her? Not only that, but he had ample information to prove that people were watching her in the Makai and he knew that she needed to be guarded very well. This hot headed assault that Koenma had started was assured to end in nothing but trouble if the two of them did not resolve this conflict soon.

"How quickly you forget that Artemis is assigned to my care," Koenma said sharply waving his finger in the detective's face, "Or would you like me to fetch the paperwork showing my father's signature?" He growled harshly as he stared at his detective down the hall, "I am your boss, and you will do as I say."

"Or what?" Yusuke spat, obviously irritated with Koenma's pulling rank on him once again.

"I shouldn't have to remind you that I will pull all of my resources from Keiko's case," He said quickly, "Not to mention that you won't be able to keep yourself or your mother up without the money you get from this."

Yusuke snarled, knowing that Koenma was right in saying this. Knowing that Koenma had bested him in this argument was enough to make Yusuke want to give into Koenma's demands all together. However, he knew that Kuwabara and Yukina could not protect Artemis from the things that could possibly be coming her way, and knowing that was enough to make him stick it out and deal with the loud mouthed ruler.

"I'm glad to see that you have settled down, finally," Koenma said, a little more cheerily as he prepared to make his way back to his office, "Go home and take it easy for a while." He said gently, showing the first real concern for his team leader that he had for a while, "You've had a hard day today. Rest. It will be good for you."

Yusuke could feel his mazoku side literally crying out in his head, begging to split that bastard open and run his fingers through his still warm blood. However, the detective shook these thoughts from his mind as he made his way into his room, and entered the portal that was to take him straight to his home.

When he arrived, the smell of his mother's repulsive habitual drinking seeped through the front door. Opening the door, he found his mother lying in the middle of their living room floor passed out; a bottle of Jack Daniel's still clutched tightly in her left hand.

"Damn, drunk-ass bitch," Yusuke muttered to himself as he tossed his mother's limp body over his shoulder and carried her to her bedroom, tossing her carelessly on the bed. He couldn't help but wish that she had stayed out for the night, just so that he could be alone with his thoughts.

Feeling that gnawing sensation surfacing in his stomach once more, he decided to make his way into the kitchen and rummage through the refrigerator until he found something edible. However, making his way into the kitchen, he forgot all about his hunger and his thoughts drifted back to Artemis.

The kitchen looked just the same as it always had, but he could still her dirty face sitting on the stool, watching him wash the dishes after their first breakfast together. "Why did I have to be such an idiot?" He asked himself as he sat down on her stool, pulling his legs up to his chest, much like she would have.

"There is no way I'm going to be able to sleep tonight," He told himself audibly as he stared out the small window in the back of the kitchen. "I have to go and see her."

So without even stopping to check in on his Mom, Yusuke flew out of the apartment in a mad dash, sprinting towards his best friend's apartment. Climbing over the brick wall that separated their two apartment buildings, Yusuke began jumping from terrace to terrace until he reached the fifth floor, last terrace on the right. Stepping past the decorative furniture that had been placed there he peered in through the glass door. Seeing no movement, he pulled his spare key from his pocket and let himself in, being sure not to make any noise as he entered.

Kuwabara's loud snoring greeted his ears, setting Yusuke at ease a bit. That overgrown oaf could sleep through anything, and the loud noise would be enough to keep him from disturbing Yukina. He tiptoed down the narrow hallway and quietly opened the door to their guest bedroom, revealing the still awake Artemis sitting on the foot of the bed.

"Hey Artie!" Yusuke whispered as quietly as he could, while shutting the door behind him. Hearing his voice was enough to make Artemis leap from her position of the bed and run over to him, patting his head like he usually did to her. "I just had to check and make sure that you were ok."

"She's fine, Urameshi." A rough voice called from behind the smiling detective, making him immediately tense. He turned to see Yukina and Kuwabara stepping out of the closet to the left of the door.

"What the hell? You guys honestly don't trust me?" Yusuke asked as he turned to face his red headed friend and his companion, both of which were dressed in their night attire.

"It's not that dude, you just woke Yukina up when you came in the door off of the balcony." Kuwabara explained as he yawned widely, stretching upwards as he continued, "We thought someone was breaking in trying to steal Artemis, so we used the passage that Koenma had installed to check in on her."

"I'm glad to know that it was just you, Yusuke," Yukina said softly, making her way over to the detective and wrapping her arms around his midsection in a gently hug, "To be honest, I haven't felt very safe since she was brought here. Like someone is watching us."

"Don't worry, Yukina," Kuwabara said placing a hand on his girlfriend's shoulder, "I've searched around this place numerous times and I haven't felt a single thing anywhere around her. Except for Yusuke's usual energy."

"Well, I just came to make sure she was safe." Yusuke said sadly as he patted the girl's head, who continued to stare at the group of people as they spoke. "Koenma wouldn't let me see her, and I just had to be able to make sure she was ok."

"Don't worry man," Kuwabara said with a quick slap to his best friend's shoulder, "I promise that I will defend her until the death if I have to. And Yukina will be able to help her with teaching her what she needs to know!"

"That's right," Yukina agreed softly, smiling up at the skeptical looking detective, "Plus, Kazuma and I believe your story. We want you to come see her. I think it will be good for the learning process."

"You guys are the best, you know that?" Yusuke said cheerily, feeling his mood lift slightly at the thought of being able to see Artemis at any time. "Well, I should probably be getting back, I have to work tomorrow."

"Goodnight man, see you later!" Kuwabara said as he placed his hand on his buddies shoulder one last time before exiting.

"Can you tell Yusuke goodnight, Artemis?" Yukina asked, her bright crimson eyes wide hoping that seeing Yusuke would spark a little enthusiasm into the young girl who stood beside her.

Artemis looked down at Yukina for a brief moment and placed her hand on Yusuke's head, patting him just like she had before.

The detective couldn't help but smile at this, "Good night, Artie," he said softly as he patted her head as well, "You be good for Kuwabara and Yukina, ok?" he said, looking straight into her large crimson orbs.

As soon as he was sure she understood, he walked quietly from the room and out the front door, leaving his friends to tend to their new companion. Just knowing that Artemis was safe with them put Yusuke at ease, and knowing that he could see her any time he liked was even better. He could feel the effects of his long day wearing on him as he made the walk back to his apartment. Glad to know she was well taken care of, Yusuke made his way back to his room, stripping as he went, until he collapsed on his bed and fell into a deep slumber, dreams of Keiko and Artemis filling his head tonight.


	7. Chapter 7

Author's Note: This chapter is dedicated to one of the authors who helped to get me started and has encouraged me to keep going even through the really tough times when writing these stories. Thank you KnifeRomance. I heart you so very much and I hope you enjoy this chapter:-)

* * *

"Very good, Artie!" Kuwabara shouted, patting her head roughly as she exited the bathroom. He couldn't believe it. In only a few short days, Yukina and Yusuke had been able to teach her to almost completely care for herself. "I'm so proud of you!' He praised her again. 

She smirked at his genuine praise, a sign that she was enjoying things that were going on around her. Almost instinctively now, she returned the favor by patting his head as well, letting him know that she appreciated the kind gesture.

"And she even flushed to toilet on her own this time!" Yukina said as she emerged from behind the taller girl, smiling broadly as she wiped her hands on the paper towel. "Pretty soon she won't even need either of us to check behind her!" She exclaimed, wrapping her arms around Artemis' midriff.

"HONEY! I'M HOME!" An all too familiar voice called from the kitchen, the sound of a door slamming following soon after.

This set the usually calm Artemis in frenzy, leaping out of Yukina's grasp and scurrying towards the sound of his voice. She dodged the kitchen table and flung her arms around Yusuke's neck, sending the two of them straight to the ground.

"It's good to see you too Artie," Yusuke chuckled, patting her head as she snuggled against his chest. "But we are going to have to break you of this habit." He sighed as he tried to push himself off the floor, Artemis still clinging tightly to his neck.

"How was work today, bro?"Kuwabara asked, wrapping his fingers around Artemis arms and trying to pry her away from the other young man. After finally freeing his friend from her grasp he stood her beside him, straightening her clothes as she patted his head.

"It was absolute hell," Yusuke sighed as he rubbed the quickly reddening part of his neck where Artemis had latched on. "Oh, but I did bring something for Artie." He laughed seeing her head perk up at the sound of her name.

"Artie," Yusuke said softly as he pulled a brown paper bag from his backpack, "Guess what I've got for you?" Handing it to her, he couldn't help but smile at the way her eyes lit up as she immediately began tearing at the package.

Her eyes lit up as she stared down at the small piece of cheesecake in her lap. Before Kuwabara could reach down to pick it up, she had already shoved it into her face licking the cake desperately from her fingertips.

"Yusuke!" Yukina chuckled as she watched Artemis tearing into the cheesecake, making a noise similar to purring with every bite she took. "How are we supposed to teach her to eat regular food and then dessert if you are always bringing her sweets after work?" She lectured, staring up at the grinning detective.

"I have to agree with Yukina on this one," Kuwabara said, resting his hands on Yukina's small shoulders.

"You are no better," Yukina said, turning to look at the shocked face of her long time love, "Allowing her to eat the cheesecake in this manner, when we've been working so hard to teach her to use silverware," She smiled at her last comment, chuckling at the expression that had overtaken her boyfriend.

"Oh well, I guess we'll just have to clean her up and start from scratch today." She sighed as she gave her love a nudge, before trying to pick Artemis up off the floor. "Kuwabara, take Artemis and get her cleaned up." She instructed, handing the girl's sticky hand to him, "Yusuke, you come and help me start dinner." She said, pulling him into the kitchen.

"Why do you want me to help you with dinner?" Yusuke questioned as he watched Kuwabara leading Artemis into the bathroom to wash up, "I mean, Kuwabara could have just as easily helped you after he finished with Artemis."

"Because, Yusuke, I wanted to talk to you," She nearly whispered as she pulled a large boiling pot from a cabinet beside their stove.

"What about?" He asked as he took a seat on the stool at the island in the middle of their kitchen, confused as to why she had all of a sudden become so quiet around him.

"Well, it's about that feeling I was having," She started quietly, moving gracefully to the refrigerator and pulling out numerous ingredients for their dinner, "I still feel like someone is watching us…"

"Yukina," Yusuke replied softly as he made his way over to where she stood, "Kuwabara has been around the apartment many times, making sure that there was no one around" He reassured, glancing out the window above the sink.

"I know that," Yukina whispered as she began to chop some tomatoes on the sink beside him, "I just feel that someone is watching us. I know it sounds strange, but could I ask if you would go and look just once as well?"

"So that's why you sent Kuwabara away," Yusuke said, looking down on the ice maiden next to him, watching her struggle to hide her tears from him, "You wanted to make sure that you didn't hurt his feelings."

"You know Kazuma," She choked on her tears, placing one of her small hands over her eyes, "If he ever thought I didn't trust him, it would break his heart." She coughed again, laying the knife on the chopping block as one sole tear made its way down her cheek.

"Yukina," Yusuke whispered as he pulled her into a gentle hug, "Don't worry about it. I'll go and check it out, and make sure that Kuwabara never finds out about this, ok?" He whispered once more, hearing the sound of a small stone hitting the floor.

"Thank you so much, Yusuke," Yukina sighed, rubbing his back once before parting with him, "I'm glad that we have a friend like you."

"What are you two talking about?" Kuwabara's voice echoed as he entered the room, Artemis clinging tightly to his arm as he walked to the sink and placed a kitchen knife in it.

"Where did that knife come from?" Yukina asked as she began feverishly chopping up tomatoes once again, making sure to keep her face hidden from Kuwabara.

"Well, I found it in Artie's room while we were changing her clothes," Kuwabara replied, prying the young girl off of his arm and placing her on a stool at the island. "She likes to steal knifey-wifeys…don't you sweetheart?" His high pitched baby talk making her nod her head in agreement, smirking the entire time.

"Kazuma, don't talk to her like that," Yukina lectured once more, making Yusuke snicker from beside his best friend. "How can you ever expect her to learn to speak properly if you keep reverting to baby talk when addressing her?"

"You guys have already started on teaching her how to talk?" Yusuke protested, nearly leaping from his bar stool at the news, "I was supposed to help you guys with that!"

"Don't worry, Yusuke," Yukina said as she dropped the diced tomatoes into the pot with her other steaming ingredients, "We've been trying to teach her small things for now. Like her name, your name, and our names."

"Yeah," Kuwabara chimed in, patting Artie on the head once more, "She's already started to pick up on the meanings of them already!" He cheered as he used his finger to force her face gently to look at his own, "For example: Artemis, can you point to Yukina?"

Artemis stared into his beady brown eyes for brief moment, as if she were contemplating her instructions. She nodded once to him before making her way over to Yukina, using her index finger to point at Yukina's back, smirking broadly when she saw Kuwabara and Yusuke smiling at her.

"Very good Artie." Kuwabara praised from across the room, "Now, can you point to Yusuke?" He asked, hoping that she would know who Yusuke was, without having to explain to her.

Immediately Artemis jumped towards Yusuke, knocking several tomatoes and onions into the floor as she went. She wrapped her long, thin arms around his neck gently, nuzzling him ever so slightly. She stared up into his dark brown eyes, and smirked once again as she pointed to his chest.

Yusuke grinned broadly and patted her head, "Very good Artie!" He spoke gently as he hugged her tightly to him, "I'm so glad that you know who I am!" He whispered, grinning at the sounds of her purring as he held her against himself.

"Oh no, Artie!" Yukina cried from the floor, scooping some of the tomatoes from the floor, "You've ruined these tomatoes!" She scolded holding one up to Artemis' face, and showing her the ruptured side, "This is why we don't jump around inside. You could break things or hurt yourself!" She firmly lectured, causing Artemis' smirk to turn to a scowl very quickly as she turned her eyesight to the ground.

"No problem, Yukina," Yusuke said, winking towards the upset ice maiden, "I'll run out and get some more. We got a fresh shipment in today down at the store, it will only take a few minutes."

"Very well, Yusuke," Yukina said as she handed a wet paper towel to Kuwabara, turning back to the stove. "Take Artemis with you. I think it would be good for her to get out."

"That's a great idea, Yukina," Kuwabara interjected from the floor as he scooped up the remaining pieces of tomato, "But, you know what Koenma said. He CAN'T be alone with her. Hell, he's not supposed to be with her at all."

"I know that Kazuma," Yukina replied looking towards Yusuke, "However, I honestly don't think they are keeping that close of an eye on us. If they were, they would have taken her from us already, don't you think?" She reminded him, making the two boys nod in agreement.

"Don't worry, I'll be sure to keep an eye out," Yusuke replied with another quick wink to Yukina as he led Artemis out the door.

Artemis squinted as she step into the bright light of the setting sun, hiding behind Yusuke. "Don't worry, Artie, it won't be so bad once we get down stairs." He said pulling her along behind him.

Sure enough as soon as the pair reached the ground, Artemis bolted from behind him, cutting a small aerial flip before stopping and waiting for her companion to catch up. He smiled at her and patted her head, before she ran off once again this time in the direction of the road.

"ARTEMIS!" He called after her, as he made as mad dash towards the girl who was running towards the busy street. "STOP!" He roared, silently hoping that the enthusiastic girl would stop before she reached the rushing cars.

Instantly she skidded to a stop, mere inches from the busy street. She turned to look at her pursuer, cocking her head to one side as she waited for an explanation as to why he made her stop.

"Artemis, you can't go running off into the street like that. It can't be dangerous." He explained as he took her hand in his, "Believe me, I should know." He said with a chuckle as he led her in the direction of his store.

She squeezed his hand tightly within her own, lifting it to her line of sight to examine the rough exterior. She ran her hands over the calluses that cover the palm before cupping her hand within his again and dropping it back to the side. The sound of a song bird caused her to jump slightly; stopping dead in her tracks to look up at the small golden creature perched on a nearby wall.

"That's a bird, Artie," Yusuke instructed, staring at the creature, enjoying its soothing song for a moment, "Can you say bird?" He asked, wondering if he could get a word out of her. "Bird," He repeated again, wondering if she needed a little extra incentive.

She stared up at him for a moment, confused as to why he kept repeating the same word over and over again to her. Placing her hands to his mouth, she memorized every movement his mouth made, before forcing her mouth to do the same.

"Very good Artie!" he cheered patting her on the head, "Now, you just have to say it. BIRD" He said it slower this time, hoping that extra annunciation would help her understand.

She looked at him for another moment and made the same gestures he did, but still no words came from her mouth. Forcing her mouth to do it with her fingers once again, she tried for many minutes to do this. When she couldn't make the word come out, her hands dropped limply at her sides and she turned her gaze to the ground.

"It's ok, Artie," Yusuke reassured, draping his arm around her shoulder. "You tried your best, and that's all that matters right now." He said, as he led her into the nearby store.

"Ah, Yusuke!" The store manager greeted, seeing one of his favorite employees walk through the door, "Back so soon?" He asked, wiping his hands on his apron as he made his way from behind the counter.

"Just need some tomatoes for dinner," He said to his balding manage, scratching his head as he watched the man coming around closer to Artemis.

"Say now, who's your friend?" He asked as he cleaned his glasses on his apron before placing them back on his nose, "She mighty pretty." He replied as he stuck out his hand, smiling. Artemis smirked back as her hand drifted towards her necklace.

"This is Artemis, Mr. Toyama," He answered, brushing Artemis' hand away from her deadly jewel and looking to his boss, "Forgive her, sir, she not from around her." He explained as he forced her hand down at her side, "She doesn't quite understand our customs yet."

"That's quite alright, Yusuke," Mr. Toyama responded, as he made his way behind the counter to get a brown paper bag. "How many tomatoes did you say you needed?" He questioned as he made his way over to the island where the tomatoes were stacked delicately.

"Three please. Oh and could you throw in a spare onion?" He asked his boss, grinning at the slight glare he got from the older gentleman as he made his way around the store.

"There you go, Yusuke," Mr. Toyama said quickly, placing the brown bag into his young employees hands, "Free of charge, but don't let the other employees know about this, got it?" he instructed, winking at Yusuke.

"Got it, Mr. Toyama." Yusuke replied, with a slight bow, causing Artemis to mimic his actions. "Come on Artie, let's get these back to Yukina and Kuwabara." He instructed, causing a broad smirk to grace her face for a brief moment.

The two exited the shop and began making the short trek back to the apartment. Artemis continued gazing around at the entire world as they walked, her crimson eyes darting from one side of the path to the other. Yusuke couldn't help but to chuckle as she pulled him faster down the walkway.

Suddenly, she stopped, causing Yusuke to lurch backwards at the sudden feeling of weight on his arm. "Artie, what's wrong?" He asked, immediately putting his guard up, wondering if she was sensing something that he wasn't.

Her entire body tensed as her eyes darted back and forth before the bushes beside them. She placed her hand quickly on her gem and prepared to summon it as a small kitten emerged from beneath the bushes, letting out a quiet 'meow' as it stood before her.

Yusuke heaved a huge sigh of relief once the kitten had emerged, "See Artie, it was only a kitten. Nothing to be worried about." He said, thankful that it hadn't been something else behind that bush.

Artemis stared down at the kitten, which was now nuzzling her bare ankles, taking in all of its features. His bright blue eyes staring up at the two of them, standing out against his dark tabby fur. He nudged Artemis leg with his wet grey nose. Artemis, in response, bent down and touched his nose with her finger before touching her own, confused as to why his was wet.

"It's ok Artie, his nose is supposed to be like that," Yusuke explained staring down at the girl who was still intrigued by the small creature in front of her, "Now come on, Artie, we have to get these back so Yukina can finish dinner." He instructed, giving her hand a tug.

However, for once since he had known her, Artemis didn't follow his instruction. Instead, she pulled back on his hand and pointed to the kitten.

"Do you want to take the kitten with us?" He asked looking down at her, before glancing to the muddy kitten. "I don't know how Yukina will feel about this, but I know Kuwabara can talk her into it." He replied with a smile as he scooped the kitten up into his arms.

Artemis continued staring at the kitten, which was now nearly eye level to her. "Would you like to hold the kitten, Artemis?" Yusuke implored as he held the small creature out to her.

She seemed confused by this notion at first, sticking her hand out to rub against the kitten's dangling tail. "Don't worry Artie, just do what I did." He instructed, curling her arms up and placing the kitten in them.

The kitten instantly began purring making Artemis smirk at the little creature in her arms. She began making a mock purring sound with her tongue, making Yusuke chuckle from behind her.

"You know, you should pet him, Artie," Yusuke explained as he ran his fingers down the kitten's back, "That will make the little guy extremely happy."

Artie smirked down at the kitten and copied Yusuke's exact movements, running her long fingernails down the kitten's back. The kitten let out another 'meow' and nuzzled closer to Artemis closing his eyes, making Artemis smile.

"Good," Yusuke sighed as he grabbed Artemis hand once again, "Now come on. Let's get you and the little guy home. Yukina and Kuwabara are going to be worried if we don't get home soon!" He replied as he and Artemis began walking briskly towards the apartment making their way up the steps.

"Sorry that took so long you guys…" Yusuke apologized as they made their way back into the kitchen, "We got a little sidetracked," he explained as Artemis made her way into the dining room, still stroking the sleeping kitten in her arms.

"Sidetracked with what, Urameshi?" Kuwabara asked irritably, ripping the bag from his friend's hand and giving it to Yukina, "You guys have been gone for nearly an hour! The store's only a block down…"

'Meow,' the kitten made his presence known as he stretched out in Artemis arms, causing Kuwabara and Yukina to whip around in the direction of the noise.

"You brought home a kitten?" Yukina questioned, her crimson eyes growing wide as she stared into his face. "We can't keep a kitten here; it will distract her learning process." She lectured as she watched Kuwabara make his way to the sleeping animal "Besides, Kazuma will spend all of his time playing with it and I'll have to get everything done myself." She said with a huge sigh.

Suddenly, a loud thump echoed throughout the apartment, sending Yusuke and Yukina rushing into the dining room. There, they found Kuwabara sprawled on the floor, knocked out cold, a bruise beginning to form on his left cheek. Artemis stared down at him, while cuddling the kitten closer to her face.

"Well, I think it's apparent you aren't going to have to worry about that," Yusuke chuckled as he leaned down trying to rouse his unconscious friend.

"Artemis, we don't hit people like that," Yukina scolded, causing Artemis to look at the ground once again, "You should never hit anyone, unless they are trying to harm you."

"It's ok, Yukina," Kuwabara groaned as he sat up, rubbing his cheek, "I didn't explain what I was doing. I just dove in and tried to take the kitten and she reacted. I should have known better." He explained making his way over to Artemis. "May I please hold the kitten, Artie?"

Artemis looked at Kuwabara for a moment, confused by what he was saying at first. Then, glancing down at his hands, she comprehended the meaning and passed the kitten to him, causing a broad smile to cross his face.

"Thanks, Artemis" He said patting his head as he stared down at the kitten in his arms, "Hi there little guy, what should we name you?" He asked as he began stroking the kitten's left ear. The kitten yawned and turned around, giving Kuwabara a good shot of his rear as he ran his tail in his face. "Um, little girl." Kuwabara said blushing as he handed the kitten back to Artemis.

"I think, we should let Artemis name her." Yukina replied as she scratched the kittens white tipped ears. "She can name her when she learns to speak. I think it may give her extra incentive to learn."

"Great idea, Yukina," Yusuke replied, giving her a quick squeeze, "What would we do without you here?"

"Probably starve," Yukina chuckled, hearing Yusuke's stomach growling beside her ear. "Come on, dinner will be ready in a few minutes." She said leading the two boys back to the kitchen.

"Come on, Artie," Yusuke said, trying to pull her towards the kitten.

"Leave her alone man, let her play with her new friend." Kuwabara interjected, smiling as he watched the kitten bat a long strand of Artemis white hair back and forth.

"I'm sorry you guys," Yusuke said as he and Kuwabara made their way into the kitchen, each taking a seat on the bar stools, watching as Yukina dipped each of them a plate. "She looked so cute playing with the kitten that I couldn't say no."

"It's quite alright, Yusuke," Yukina replied as she passed a bowl of soup to him, "We've actually been thinking of getting her an animal companion for the last few days. Though, we were thinking something small like a fish." She sighed as she made her way into the dining area.

"It's ok, man," Kuwabara whispered, nudging his former partner, "I wanted to get her a kitten, so you just helped me win that argument." He laughed, "That's something that I don't do very often."

"There we go, Artemis," Yukina said as she helped the girl to her stool beside Yusuke, "You eat your soup and then you can play with the kitten.

"Kn…" Artemis muttered, causing all eyes in the room to fall on her. She scrunched her nose and placed her hands to her face, trying desperately to make her mouth create the right shapes.

"What are you trying to say, Artie?" Yusuke asked, looking deep within her crimson eyes.

"Kni…" She tried again, this time, pushing harder on her face, making small red marks appear around her mouth as she desperately tried to form the word.

"Knife?" Yukina completed the sentence, making Artemis turn to look at her, bright crimson eyes dancing with her accomplishment. "No sweetheart, this is soup. We don't use a knife to eat soup." Yukina explained.

Artemis shook her head violently. "Knifey." She whispered, looking at Yukina as if expecting some sort of praise.

Yukina glance up at Kuwabara, who turn his gaze immediately from her, "Very good, Artemis, but it's called a knife. Not a knifey." She instructed, going to fetch a knife from the drawer hoping a visual aid would help her to explain.

Artemis shook her head once again, turning around to face Yusuke and Kuwabara. "Knifey!" She said louder this time, staring into Yusuke's eyes, hoping to make him comprehend.

"This is a knife," Yukina said placing the knife in her hand, "You use it to eat with."

Artemis threw the knife across the kitchen, leaving it sticking in a nearby wall. "KNIFEY!" She shouted this time as she leapt from her stool and ran out of the kitchen.

"What's her problem?" Yusuke asked as the three of them followed her into the living room where she sat.

"Knifey," She whispered this time, stroking the sleeping kitten that sat next to her on the couch, smiling at the purring he was making.

"I guess the little thing has a name now," Yusuke said smiling as he made his way over to Artemis. "Very good, Artie. Her name is Knifey." He said, patting her on the head.

"But that's not a suitable name for a cat!" Yukina sighed as she pulled Yusuke aside. "Besides, I'm worried that it may confuse her if she thinks that knife and cat synonymous words." She explained looking down at the smiling girl.

"Yukina, it's the first word she's ever said," Kuwabara responded, placing his hands on her shoulders, "And she associates it with her kitten. I think it's a good name for the little thing." He said pulling her closer to him, "That just means we'll have to work a little harder on the meanings of cat and knife."

"Very well," Yukina replied, shaking her head slightly and smiling at the sleeping kitten. "Knifey it is then."


	8. Chapter 8

"Come on Artie, you can do it!" Yusuke cheered, staring into her bright crimson eyes as he pointed to himself for the fifteenth time in a row, "Say Yusuke." He instructed, making sure to enunciate every syllable in his name.

"Knifey," She repeated back to him with a smirk, causing his head to drop in frustration. She had been doing this for a week now, ever since she had first brought the little kitten home. Yusuke had thought that maybe she would be able to communicate verbally with them soon, but she had only been repeating knifey since that day.

"I think we may have encouraged her a little too much when she said Knifey," Yukina said with a small sigh as she handed Yusuke an unopened bottle of water. "Artemis, would you like a bottle of water too?"

"Knifey!" She cheered with a vigorous head nod. Yukina sighed and made her way back into the kitchen while Yusuke tried once more to get through to her.

"Come on now, Artie," Yusuke addressed her more sternly this time, causing her smirk to fade to a scowl within moments. "Say Yusuke." He said harshly, his frustrations beginning to get to him as she stared into his brown eyes for a moment.

Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion, as if she were trying to process why his tone had changed so suddenly. She instinctively reached for her crimson gem, only to have her hand brushed away by Yusuke. She pouted for a moment as she stared at him, his frustration beginning to rub off on her.

"Alright you two, that's enough," Kuwabara chuckled as he pulled Artemis from her seat, "That's enough of that for now. Artemis, why don't you go help Yukina give Knifey a bath?" He grinned seeing her eyes light up at the sound of the kitten's name. "They are waiting for you in the bathroom."

"KNIFEY!" She cheered as she ran off in the direction of the bathroom, leaving Kuwabara to deal with the severely frustrated Spirit Detective.

"Man, you can't rush these things," Kuwabara instructed, patting his best friend roughly on the back, "you're frustration is rubbing off on her, you know?"

"I just want her to be able to say my name…" Yusuke mumbled, listening to the sounds of a crying kitten coming from the bathroom. "If she says my name, maybe that will show Koenma that I'm not a freak and that I can handle this myself."

"Since when have you cared about what Koenma thought?" Kuwabara asked, confused as to why after all the years of torturing the toddler, had Urameshi decided to go soft.

"It's not Koenma," Yusuke snapped turning from Kuwabara to stare out the window beside them, "It's the fact that he gave me a mission, and took it away from me before he even let me explain what was going on."



"Why should that matter to you?" Kuwabara questioned further, staring at the obviously distraught detective, "I mean, you said yourself, you didn't have time to deal with this mission, not with Keiko's murderer still running loose."

Yusuke flinched at the sound of her name--guilt overtaking his entire being. He pressed his face into his hands as Keiko's face flooded his mind, followed by the gruesome crime scene she had been found in. How could he have forgotten about her case? He felt his energy rising within him as her memory continued to haunt him, cursing Kuwabara mentally for mentioning her to him.

"That was before I met Artemis…" Yusuke exhaled, feeling a slight calm washing over him as he thought of the young girl placed in his care, "I know that Keiko would want me to take care of her…it's obvious she needs someone to do that."

"But she has me and Yukina for that," Kuwabara muttered as he leaned against the back of the couch, closing his eyes, "So that means you should get back to looking for Keiko's murderer; we can handle things from here."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Yusuke snapped, feeling his blood boiling once again. Was Kuwabara really trying to imply that they didn't need his help? If it weren't for him--the thought stopped mid sentence. What had he really done for Artemis since she had been in his care? He had only been able to teach her the basics--and even then, Yukina had to come in and refine her techniques.

"Are you ok, man?" Kuwabara asked as he saw Yusuke press his hands to his face once again.

"I don't know…" Yusuke replied softly as he rose from his seat, making his way toward the door "I'm going out for a little bit. I need to clear my head."

"Take as much time as you need," Kuwabara whispered, silently cursing himself for bringing Keiko's name into the conversation. His mind brought back the memories of the broken spirit detective at her funeral making him feel even worse. He turned his view to the window, hoping to hide the shamed look that had crossed his face--waiting in silence for the sound of Yusuke leaving.

Yusuke sighed once again as he exited the apartment shutting the door behind him. Then, without a word, he made as dash in the direction of the park.

Kuwabara shook his head once again, trying to shake the memories of the shattered detective from his mind as he watched his best friend run away from their apartment complex.

"Kazuma would mind giving me a little help…" Yukina's soft voice brought his attention back to the present as he turned to look at her. Smiling, he tried his best to hold back his laughter as he stared across the room at the source of the voice.

There stood Yukina, framed in the doorway, usually neat hair now a dripping wet mass that hid her crimson eyes. Her shirt and trousers were complete soaked too, the excess water dripping from her 

soaked hair and clothes, causing a puddle to form around her tiny feet. Her hands rested on her hips as she stared across the room at her lover before pointing towards the bathroom.

"I need to go and get myself dried off," she sighed, pushing her cerulean bangs from her eyes, "Just go in there and teach her how to clean the bathroom up. I'll help her get changed once I get myself changed…" She giggled as she made her way into their room, shutting the door softly behind her.

"Hey Artemis!" Kuwabara smirked as he made his way into the bathroom. "Just what did you do…?" He trailed off as he stared at the scene before his eyes.

Two inches of water coated every inch of the floor, threatening to soak into their brand new carpet. He immediately grabbed a towel from the rack, preparing to mop some of the excess water up and prevent it from traveling any further. However, when he found all of those wet, he dove for the linen closet beside the bathroom, placing at towel at the edge of the doorway just before the water could make its way out.

Artemis stared at him from the middle of the puddle, smirking, apparently very amused with his antics. Her usually bright and well kept white hair was now a tangled mess, sticking out of the bun that Yukina had worked so hard to perfect. She smirked when he looked at her and held up a very wet and shivering Knifey.

"Artie…" Kuwabara began, taking Knifey from her grasp and toweling the tiny kitten in a dry towel, "Just how did you make this mess?" He asked, as he surveyed the rest of the damage.

She smirked up at him, picking up the bar of soap and beginning to rub it on a washcloth, just as Yusuke had taught her. Then before he could react, she was standing before him, trying desperately to rip his shirt from his torso.

"Whoa Artemis!" he shouted, accidently dropping Knifey on top of the girl's head as he struggled to pull his shirt from her hands, "I don't need a bath!" he shouted again, popping her hand once causing her smirk to change to a scowl instantaneously.

"Calm down, Artie, it's ok," Kuwabara said quickly, noticing her hand making its way up towards that dangerous stone of hers. He had never seen her in action; however, Koenma had been sure to warn them of how deadly she could be if she ever lost control. "Just take your hand away from the gem, ok?" he nervously instructed as he reached for her hand.

Big mistake. He saw her eyes immediately narrow as he gem emanated a bright crimson light that engulf the entire bathroom in its glow. As soon as the light faded he found himself staring at her long crimson broadsword, his entire body immediately tensing at the energy she was giving off.

"Just take it easy, Artie," He said nervously, putting his hands in front of himself, "just put the sword away and let's get this place cleaned up." He said taking a step.



Another big mistake. She swung her massive sword in his direction, clearly as a warning to her attacked. Seeing him spring back and put his hands up in a defensive pose was enough incentive for her to stand her ground. She broke form for a moment to place Knifey on the floor, pushing the small tabby kitten behind the toilet, as if making sure he wouldn't see what she was about to do.

On she had hidden her kitten, her eyes turned back to Kuwabara once again, shifting her enormous sword into one hand. She glared across the room at him, as if she were searching his entire pose, looking for the smallest flaw.

"Yukina…" Kuwabara called nervously down the hall.

With his sudden movement she lunged for him, swinging her behemoth sword one-handed and just barely missing his neck. She wrapped her long, slender fingers around his wrist and with a quick flick she had tossed him out of the door and into the hallway wall.

"Artemis," He coughed as he pulled himself from the wall, staring up at his assailant. "I didn't mean to do it, please stop." He silently begged, feeling that her energy was continuing to grow, easily surpassing his own.

She stared down at him, her eyes locking with his for a brief moment. Then, she placed her sword to his neck, a thin red line of blood appearing there. She smirked at the nervous look on his face as she began to apply more pressure, seeing tears beginning to form in his eyes.

"Ok, you two…" Yukina chirped happily as she made her way out into the hallway, "playtime is…ARTEMIS STOP!" She shouted very uncharacteristically when she finally became aware of what was going on.

Instantly, Artemis' eyes lit up at the sound of Yukina's raised voice. She turned to look at the small fire maiden, shock washing over her face. Putting her gaze back down to the floor, she dismissed the sword back into its gem and made her way back into the bathroom. Picking up the kitten from behind the toilet she made her way silently into the living room, not bothering to look at the two people who continued to stare after her.

"Oh, Kazuma!" Yukina gasped as she ran towards her lover, hitting her knees as she began to instantly inspect his wounds. "Are you alright?" She asked, tears forming in her eyes as she looked at the relatively shallow cut along his neck.

"I'm fine, Yukina," He said softly, brushing her hands away from the cut for a moment to peek around the corner at Artemis. His heart broke to see her sitting on the couch, stroking her cat, the confusion apparent on her face. "Maybe we should go and try to explain this to her."

"Explain what?" Yukina choked, tears threatening to slide down her cheeks at any moment, "Kuwabara, I don't think it's safe for us to keep her here. If she did that to you, can you imagine what she might do to someone she doesn't know?"



"It was my fault."

"What do you mean?" Yukina asked, her eyes also nervously glancing around the corner at the young girl.

"I smacked her hand…" He trailed off for a moment, shaking his head when he thought back on the stupidity of his actions. "It was a stupid move. I should have known better, especially after the lecture Koenma gave us."

"But, look at what she did." Yukina said quickly, pointing the wall above his head, noting the indention. "If our landlord finds about this, he's not going to be happy."

"He won't, Yukina, I'll fix it." He replied, pushing himself from the floor and extending a hand down to her, "I promise I will. But right now, I think we need to go and try to explain to her what just happened. Ok?" She shook her head silently and took his hand, pulling herself up.

"Hey, Artie…" Kuwabara said softly as they entered the room, causing Artemis head to pop up and look at them for a moment before turning her attention back to Knifey. "Artie, come on now, it wasn't your fault…" he said, extending a hand to her.

She shied away from it instantly scooting farther down the couch, as if she were trying to put more distance between the two of them. She scooped Knifey up and held her closer to her chest, scratching the small white patch underneath the kittens chin.

"Artemis," Yukina spoke gently, sitting down in front of the young girl, looking up into her face, "We know that Kazuma scared you and its ok that you reacted." She paused, feeling an enormous amount of sympathy wash over her as she stared into the girl's confused face. She really had no idea of what she had done, and Yukina felt a pang of guilt in her heart for believing she would ever try to purposely hurt either of them. "We just want you to know, that you shouldn't hit people, unless they are trying to harm you."

Artemis stared down at the ice apparition for a moment, as if she were trying to comprehend exactly what she was saying.

"Yeah, and I'm sorry for confusing you, Art." Kuwabara said with a slight grin, "I didn't know you would get so defensive. Can we be buddies again?" He asked as he placed his hand five inches above the kitten's head, not wanting to spook her.

Artemis stared up at him for a moment before pulling his head down onto her kitten's head, letting him know that she understood his motion.

"Great. Now let's get you all cleaned up dear." Yukina giggled as she stared at the mussed and soaking wet girl sitting on her couch. "Kazuma, please get started on dinner and I'll be back as soon as possible."

With Yusuke



"Damn…" He hissed for the fifteenth time as he shattered another tree in his path. "Why did he have to bring her back into the picture…Why?" He roared as he took another shot at another.

He hadn't been able to get Keiko out of his head since Kuwabara had mentioned her. Everything about her had become so fresh in his mind once again. The way her long auburn hair would wrap around her when the wind blew or how her deep brown eyes filled with tears every time he left for a mission. He remembered the way her ears turned red every time she began to lecture him--even the scent of her favorite perfume.

He shook his head violently as he sunk against the nearest tree stump. Why couldn't he just move on with his life? Why did he have to deal with the pain of losing his best friend and love every time her thought he was beginning to move on? He closed his eyes--giving in to the haunting memories of the day that he had discovered her.

Flashback

He hadn't slept at all that night, his body wracked with dry heaves as the memory of Keiko's severely mutilated body continued to haunt his mind. Botan had stayed beside him the entire night, rubbing his back in silence as she too shed her fair share of tears.

"Botan." Koenma called to her through the communicator, causing her to jump slightly at the interruption.

"Yes, sir," She answered quietly, never removing her hand from Yusuke's back.

"Bring Yusuke to me. We need to discuss this situation, now." He instructed as he severed the connection, not wanting to face the wrath of the angry reaper, much less her much more hostile counterpart.

"Yusuke…I"

"I'm not going." He hissed violently, cutting her off midsentence. He flipped over onto his left side and grabbed another tissue.

"Yusuke…I know you don't want to." Botan whispered gently, running her fingers through his slick black hair, "But I can assure you that Lord Koenma would never call you unless he didn't have some sort of information on her case."

Yusuke felt his innards lurch once again as the scene flashed before his eyes once more. Why had he and Kuwabara been such pigs and ate all of her food that day? If they hadn't she would have never been alone when whatever it was showed up. He would never forget the scene he had stumbled upon as he let himself into her apartment. Her body severely beaten, bloodied and sliced, almost beyond the point of recognition. The bloodied claw marks around the door, showed that Keiko had been trying to escape her attack before it descended upon her, inflicting its final blow.



Yusuke leaned over the side of the bed and emptied the contents of his stomach into the trashcan he kept beside his bed.

"Please, Yusuke," Botan murmured, as she turned her face from the disgusting scene, feeling her own stomach cut a few flips of its own. "I promise you that he is doing all in his power to crack this case."

"He better be…" Yusuke growled as he pushed himself off of his bed, running a hand through his hair, "Because if he isn't and I find out about it…I'll kill him and then the bastard that did this." He hissed.

Botan shuddered at the glare that had settled on his red, swollen face. It broke her heart even more to see Yusuke, someone who had always been such a strong person, so broken before her. 'Oh, Keiko…if you could only see what your death is doing to him, you would have never questioned his loyalty to you.' She told her friend silently in her own mind as she summoned a portal directly to Koenma's office.

Feeling the atmosphere changing in his room, Koenma prepared to face the wrath of one very distressed spirit detective. "Yusuke…." He started quietly, hearing their shuffling feet entering his office, "Once again, I am so sorry for you loss."

"Save it you ass," Yusuke hissed as he spun Koenma's chair around, forcing the ruler to face him, "If you and your border patrol had been doing their fucking jobs, Keiko would still be here and I wouldn't be having this discussion with you right now."

"Right…" Koenma agreed, not wanting to anger the already livid teen--it was apparent that he was already suffering enough. "I just wanted you to know that we have documented the room and found little evidence…"

Yusuke stifled a growl, his blue aura flaring up around him, "You mean you dragged me out of bed to tell me that?" He muttered, his hand instinctively going towards Koenma's throat threatening to snap it in half if the answer to his question was yes.

"Wait, I wasn't finished," Koenma whispered nervously as he began rummaging through his drawers. "While there wasn't much evidence on who the perpetrator was, this one folder of evidence was collected." He explained as he passed the folder over.

Yusuke snatched the folder from his boss' hand, flipping it open immediately. Within it were hundreds of pictures of Keiko, as well as a listing of every single place that she tended to frequent on a day to day basis. "I don't understand what this means."

"It means they were going to get her, Yusuke," Koenma explained, hoping that this would help calm the detective a little, "there is nothing any of us could have done to prevent this." He shook his head as he stared up at the detective.

"You called me here…to cover your own ass?" Yusuke hissed as he threw the folder across the room, pictures of Keiko flying everywhere as he wrapped his calloused hands around Koenma's throat. "You sick fucker."



"No…no Yusuke…" Koenma choked out, clawing desperately at Yusuke's hands, trying to make him release his vice-grip. "I didn't call…to cover myself…I wanted to make you feel better." He managed to choke out before Yusuke tossed him across the room.

"Yeah, while just so happening to cover for yourself," Yusuke growled again, his aura now a swirling blue inferno around him. "Do you fear my power that much Koenma? Have I ever given you reason to doubt my loyalty."

Koenma groaned as he pushed himself up into a sitting position, being face to face with the detective once again. "No…you have not. I just wanted you to know that no matter what you did, in the end they were going to get her."

"You suck as this whole cheering up thing…you ass." Yusuke spat as he made his way back over to the portal. "Until you find her killer, no missions."

"You can't do that!"

"Koenma, I really don't think you are in a position to threaten me right now." Yusuke hissed, allowing his energy to flare up once again. "I want you to actually put everything you've got into something for a change. So, until you find her killer there will be no missions from me." He growled as he hopped back through the vortex that led into his bedroom.

"Yusuke!" He heard Koenma calling.

End Flashback

"YUSUKE!" Botan squealed, causing him to snap out of his trance as he saw the reaper flying above him, trying to find some way of getting through the thick trees with her oar.

"Botan!" he called up, extending his arms, "Drop down, I'll catch you!" She did as instructed and landed perfectly in his grasp. "There, now what's wrong?"

"There's been a break in at Kuwabara's apartment!" She cried anxiously, trying to pull him in the direction of the complex. "We have to hurry."

"Botan, chill out, it was probably just some stupid thief," Yusuke said as he pushed her hand off of his own, "Nothing their insurance can't handle I'm sure."

"No you don't understand…" She whispered as she began pulling him in the direction of the complex once again, "Whoever it was broke in while they were home, beat up Kuwabara and Yukina and…they kidnapped Artemis."


	9. Chapter 9

Holy Crackers have I been gone a long time! Suddenly, after years of not writing on this, I got this strange urge to write the other day! It was the strangest thing. I am hoping that I can actually finish this for real this time. To all of my readers, if any of you are still there, I sincerely apologize for taking so long. For those who are new, welcome! I know this chapter is a little shorter than my usual ones, but I am trying to build my way back up.

* * *

"Koenma, I thought you had actual protection around the house," Yusuke fumed as he burst into the now very messy apartment.

"We did, Yusuke, but whoever these people are, they are very crafty…they even managed to get past Kuwabara's senses, and that takes a lot of careful planning." the prince sighed, standing up in teen form to look the spirit detective in the eye, "I have my very best people on the case, Yusuke, tracking all the spirit energies that have left and moved through this place in the last 48 hours. As soon as we have a lock on the signal, you are going." brown eyes bore into the spirit detectives, "That's all I can do for now…that, and help tend Yukina's wounds."

Botan was already on her knees, taking Koenma's place as she held delicate hands over the ice apparition's stomach. Yusuke hadn't noticed until then, but the staunch smell of blood practically filled the apartment. He could hear Kuwabara talking in the other room, no doubt trying to fill in the people Koenma had helping.

Yusuke bent down, taking in Yukina's injury. He was surprised the girl hadn't bled out since the cut seemed to be taking so very long to heal. He touched the girl's hand and gently pulled it away from her side, noting the redding of her dress. This…this was a blade slice! His eyes grew wide, glancing up to the girl's ruby eyes.

"She didn't mean to, Yusuke," Yukina sighed, flinching as she reached up to touch his shoulder, "I know what this looks like…but this was just me being too close. She drew the sword too quickly and I didn't have time to get out of the way."

Yusuke nodded, "Don't talk, focus on getting better."

"I'm fine, Yusuke," she nodded, forcing a small smile, "I just wanted you to know that she tried to protect us…"

Heavy footsteps stumbled into the room, and Yusuke turned to see a very beaten and bruised Kuwabara framed in the doorframe, "She really did. But they just…shot her with this really weird dart, Urameshi. It was all so fast..I never even saw him pull the gun." The taller man cast his eyes to the floor, shaking his head, "It was almost like I lost everything dealing with my spirit energy for a while…I couldn't even summon my spirit sword."

Yusuke stood, flipping his nose at his friend as he moved to walk out onto the balcony, "Maybe that's because you are getting soft."

"Shut up, Urameshi! This is no time for jokes." Kuwabara lectured. He moved to follow the other spirit detective, but was stopped by Botan's warning gaze.

"Kuwabara. You know this is how Yusuke deal's with stress. Let him be. In the meantime, why don't you help me with Yukina?"

Kuwabara nodded and made his way down onto the floor, pulling Yukina's head over onto his shoulder.

Yusuke leaned against the brick wall of the building, his eyes staring out at the night skyline. Of course, the one time that he hadn't been around they had managed to take Artie. He didn't want to blame Kuwabara and Yukina, it was obvious they had tried to protect her. Even still, he felt like if she had just been with him, they wouldn't have been in this situation. Artie would still be safe, Yukina wouldn't be injured, and Kuwabara wouldn't have to worry.

The cars rushing through the city gave the streets an iridescent glow, instantly making that knot that was growing in Yusuke's stomach get larger. What if they never found her? It wasn't an unreal thought. People disappeared in this world every day. One moment they were there and the next they were gone. Sahara had been that way. One moment they had been laughing, and joking even though she was injured and the next….

"The situation is not the same, detective."

Yusuke stood up from the wall, running over to the railing just as a very familiar figure hopped over. "Well…son of a bitch."

Hiei stood before him, arms crossed over a very worn black shirt. His boots were caked in mud, pants stained with grass and grime, giving away just how much time he had spent in the woods over the last few months. "I'm not here to stay."

Yusuke's face fell a little at that. He knew that Hiei wouldn't stay; that he couldn't stay. He didn't quite understand why, but the death of Sahara…had seemed to hit Hiei the most. None of them wanted to believe it, but secretly they all knew it to be true. Hiei didn't. He still maintained that Sahara was out there and alive somewhere, and was never going to be able to come back to them until someone got out there to look for her.

"I understand, Hiei," Yusuke said with a nod, "What did you find."

"I was unable to find much of anything on your culprits," Hiei reported, "but I was able to track the girl. She has a very…distinct energy signal. I gave my information to the investigators to give to you, but…"

"You couldn't just leave without saying hi?" Yusuke teased, poking the bear a little.

Hiei shot his cold gaze at Yusuke eyes narrowing deeply. This was no time for games, apparently, and Hiei wanted him to know that. Yusuke shook his head, holding up his hands. "I know, I know. Calm down. You wanted to check on Yukina."

Hiei's eyes softened instantly at the ice apparition's name, eyes drifting down to his right arm. Yusuke had been able to feel it since Hiei had made his presence known; the familiar cool feel of the flames fighting against their bandages. Hiei was angry; more angry than he had been in a long time. Yet something kept him restrained, kept him from dropping it all and going in there to check on his sister.

"Any leads on Sahara?"

The fire demon turned his gaze out to the city, watching everything move. "Nothing," he said quietly, eyes slowly drifting back to the spirit detective, "And sense when do you believe me?"

"I've always wanted to believe you, man," Yusuke said, shoving his hands into his pockets, "I just…."

"It's hard to refute with the evidence we've been given."

Yusuke perked up at the thought of Hiei finishing his sentence. "I'll take care of Yukina, dude. You don't have to worry." he smiled, flashing the other demon a thumbs up.

Hiei nodded, before leaping over the railing, vanishing into the night.

"Yusuke?" Koenma asked as he walked out onto the balcony, throwing his scarf around his neck, "I heard you out here talking…are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Yusuke said, feeling much calmer than he had a few moments before, "What do we have?"

"Well, we were able to figure out why these people were able to sneak past all of you, with a little help from Kurama," the prince sighed as he held out several tiny buds in his hands, "They had planted these little plants in several of your produced bags. These are the buds of the the rampante vigne, or creeping vine as it were. These tiny little buds allow trace amounts of a specific toxin into the air…which can hamper ones spiritual capabilities."

Yusuke's eyes widened, "How…how would these have gotten into the apartment without anyone knowing?"

"We aren't sure, Yusuke. What we do know is that these little plants have taken up quite a residence in the apartment. In every inch of soil that was available in Yukina's plants have been taken over. They are growing in the drains as well. We have a team of specialists coming in to remove them."

"Koenma? Urameshi?" Kuwabara called as he stepped out onto the balcony, "You might want to take a look at this."

Yusuke and Koenma leaned forward looking into the open brown back that Kuwabara was presenting them. There among the vegetables, were a few of the little buds of this creeping vine. They could have been easily mistaken for bits of vegetation that had fallen off! Yusuke growled, and flipped the bag up looking at the writing on the side. Without another word he leapt over the railing, slowly scaling his way down the building until he reached the street below.

"What on Earth…"

"Koenma," Kuwabara sighed, flipping the bag's logo up for the prince to see. Toyama's Produce.


End file.
